JPH07160732A - Program information retrieval system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily and surely retrieve broadcast program information meeting a retrieval condition. CONSTITUTION:Broadcast programs and television column data 3 generated on a 3 work station are broadcasted from a broadcast center and are received by a BS tuner, and television column data received by the BS tuner 40 is stored in a RAM 42. Television column data stored in the RAM 42 is displayed on a TV. A CPU 41 performs retrieval processing of television column data stored in the RAM 42 based on the retrieval condition from a remote controller 48 and generates sorted retrieval television column data and stores this data in the RAM 42. Retrieval television column data stored in the RAM 42 is displayed on the TV.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is used when searching for a broadcast program desired to be reserved for recording when recording a broadcast program distributed via broadcasting in a recording device such as a video cassette recorder. The present invention relates to a suitable program information search system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a video cassette recorder (hereinafter,
When recording and recording a broadcast program (program) in a VCR, the procedure is as follows. That is,
Check the broadcast channel of the desired broadcast program, and the start time and end time of the broadcast from the TV program section described in newspapers, etc.
This is input to the remote controller (abbreviated as remote controller) and transferred to the VCR main unit. Alternatively, this channel and time may be directly input to the VCR main body.

Further, recently, a G code system which is an alternative to such a system for inputting time is becoming popular. In the G code system, a predetermined number (G code) is assigned to each broadcast program, and the user confirms the G code (number) of the broadcast program desired to be reserved and recorded from a television program column such as a newspaper. , This number is input from the remote controller to the VCR main body corresponding to the G code, or directly into the main body. The VCR main body converts this G code into a broadcast channel, broadcast start time and end time.

A VC not compatible with the G code system
A dedicated device (adapter) for causing R to execute the reserved recording operation is also commercially available. When the G code is input, this device outputs a remote control signal for starting the recording operation of a predetermined broadcast channel to the video tape recorder at the time corresponding to the G code, and the end time corresponding to the G code is reached. At this time, a remote control signal for ending the recording operation is output.

[0005]

However, in any of the above-mentioned conventional methods, in order to find a broadcast program for which a recording reservation is desired, the user himself / herself selects the desired broadcast program from a TV program column such as a newspaper. There is a problem that it is necessary to search, and it is impossible to efficiently search for a broadcast program for which a recording reservation is desired.

Further, in particular, when trying to record all the broadcast programs belonging to a certain genre, it is necessary to find each of the broadcast programs belonging to the genre and set the recording reservation individually, which results in a search error. There is also a possibility that an error such as a mistake in the recording reservation operation may occur, and there is also a problem that the recording reservation of all broadcast programs belonging to a desired specific genre cannot be surely set.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and by inputting search information, a program information search system capable of easily and reliably searching for broadcast program information that meets search conditions. The purpose is to provide.

[0008]

A program information search system according to the present invention is a program information search system for searching broadcast program information transmitted via a satellite, and a RAM 42 as a storage means for storing broadcast program information, A remote controller 48 as an input means for inputting the search condition of the broadcast program information stored in the RAM 42, and a CPU 41 as a search means for searching the broadcast program information corresponding to the search condition input by the remote controller 48. Is characterized by.

The CPU 41 can search the broadcast program information according to the satisfaction of the search condition. Also, the search condition can be a genre or keyword of broadcast program information.

[0010]

In the program information retrieval system having the above structure,
The broadcast program information stored in the RAM 42 is searched by the CPU 41. Therefore, by inputting a predetermined search condition, it becomes possible to easily and reliably make a recording reservation of a desired broadcast program.

[0011]

[Embodiment] Based on the program data obtained by receiving and decoding the information of the TV section transmitted and multiplexed in the independent data section of the BS, based on the condition of the program desired by the user to reserve the recording in advance, A recording reservation system according to an embodiment for recreating the program list will be described below.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the recording reservation system for realizing recording reservation. Television section data for recording reservation is stored in the recording reservation database large-scale computer 1. This database is transmitted to the workstation 2 as needed. It is not necessary to continuously broadcast the TV section data, and it is sufficient to broadcast the TV section data at a predetermined time within a day. The workstation 2 retrieves the TV column data from the large-scale computer 1 at the predetermined time of the day, and sends it to the broadcasting center 3
To transmit. In the broadcasting center 3, the TV section data is BS
It is multiplexed into the independent data part of and broadcast. The broadcast signal is transmitted to the VCR 6 via the BS (broadcast satellite) 4 and the outdoor device 5.
And is displayed on the TV 7 through the VCR 6.

Next, the structure of television section data broadcast from the broadcasting center 3 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the television section data is configured by arranging a channel header 21 and data 22 of each channel (in this embodiment, data of N channels from channel 1 to channel N). Channel header 21
Has a fixed length, but the data 22 of each channel has a variable length.

In the channel header 21, the number 23 of channels to be transmitted (N in the case of this embodiment) is arranged at the head thereof, and subsequently, the offset value 24 for each channel is arranged. That is, as described above, since the data of each channel has a variable length,
The data length is different. Therefore, the channel header 21
From the beginning of the to the beginning of the data of each channel,
It is transmitted as the offset value 24. This makes it possible to access the data of each channel from the channel header.

A program header 25 is arranged at the head of the data 22 of each channel, and subsequently, information 26 of the program (program) of the channel is arranged. The program header has a fixed length, but the program information has a variable length. In the program header 25, the number of programs (M) 27 to be broadcast on that channel is arranged at the beginning thereof, and subsequently, offsets corresponding to the program information 3-1 to 3-M of each channel, for example, channel 3 are arranged. The value 28 is placed.

As described above, since this program information also has a variable length, the length from the beginning of the program header 25 to the beginning of each program information is set as the offset value 28, and the program header 2
By prescribing to No. 5, each information can be accessed from the program header 25. The offset value 28 for each program is represented by a fixed length. Program information 3-1 to 3-
In M, the start time 29 of the program, the broadcast time (end time) 30, the program name 31, the genre code 3 of the program
3 and program content 34 are arranged.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of the VCR 6. The signal broadcast from the broadcasting center 3 is transmitted to the B
The TV tuner data is received by the S tuner 40 and further demodulated by the decoder 46 into TV channel data.
It is stored in the RAM 42 under the control of. The TV section data stored in the RAM 42 has a structure as shown in FIG. 4, unlike the TV section data broadcast from the broadcasting center 3 in FIG. Note that the only difference from FIG. 2 is that the degree of coincidence 71 with the condition is added. The degree of agreement 71 with the condition is
Since it is not included in the broadcasted TV section data, this part is blank in the RAM 42 at the first storage. The degree of coincidence 71 with this condition is used in a search part described later.

Returning to FIG. 3, the operation of the CPU 41 is the ROM
It is executed by the control program stored in 43. The BS video signal (including audio signal) other than the TV section data input to the BS tuner 40 is recorded and reproduced by the recording / reproducing circuit 4.
4, and the VHF signal output of a VHF tuner (not shown) is input to the recording / playback circuit 44. N
The TSC signal generation circuit 45 is adapted to generate an NTSC signal from a television channel image based on television channel data stored in the RAM 42 which is generated under the control of the CPU 41.

Then, the recording / playback circuit 44 outputs the video signal from the BS tuner 40 as a video output 46 to a cathode ray tube (not shown) via the switch sw1, and similarly, the NTSC signal generation circuit 45 causes the television by the TV column data. The NTSC signal of the column image is output as a video output 46 to the TV 7 via the switch sw1. The switch sw1 is switched by the CPU 41 controlling the video output switching control circuit 49 based on a command from the remote controller 48 described later.

On the other hand, the VCR 6 generates an infrared signal,
The remote control receiving circuit 50 for receiving the infrared signal from the remote controller 48 that outputs various control contents (commands) by the infrared signal is provided.
The infrared signal is photoelectrically converted and the photoelectrically converted signal is output to the command decoder 51. The command decoder 51 generates a command corresponding to the remote control input by decoding the photoelectric conversion signal, and outputs the generated command to the CPU 41.

The command is various keys provided on the remote controller 48, that is, the recording reservation key 48 (1), and the up / down / left / right keys 4.
8 (2), program list key 48 (3), selection key 48
(4), enter key 48 (5), conversion key 48 (6), delete key 48 (7), search key 48 (8), condition setting key 48 (9), and the like. Although the function of each of the above keys will be described later, the NTSC signal generation circuit 4
By outputting the NTSC signal to the TV 7 through sw1 and displaying the TV program image by 5, the remote controller 48 is used to search the TV program data for the TV program image and make a recording reservation.

Then, the CPU 41 turns on / off the power at a predetermined time before the recording start time by the signal from the timer circuit 47.
The main power supply 53 is turned on via the off control circuit 52, the recording reservation control circuit 54 is controlled to operate the recording / playback circuit 44, and the B tuner 40 is operated.
S video signal or VHF of VHF tuner not shown
Record the video signal. When the recording end time comes after the reservation recording starts, the recording reservation control circuit 54
It controls the recording / playback circuit 44 to stop the reserved recording operation,
The main power source 53 is turned off via the power source on / off control circuit 52. The CPU 41 controls the BS tuner 40 by the BS tuner control circuit 55 to store the television section data in the RAM 42 and transmit the BS video signal to the recording / reproducing circuit 44.

By thus outputting the video output of the recorded video to the TV 7, the user can enjoy the recorded image.

The operation of the recording reservation system thus configured will be described. The workstation 2 retrieves the TV column data from the large-scale computer 1 and transmits it to the broadcasting center 3 at a predetermined time of the day. The broadcasting center 3 multiplexes the TV section data into the independent data section of the BS and broadcasts it. The broadcast signal is received by the VCR 6 via the BS (broadcast satellite) 4 and the outdoor device 5,
It is displayed on the TV 7 via this VCR 6.

The genre code 32 in FIG. 2 contains a code indicating the genre of the program, and this code is determined in advance by the broadcasting station side as follows. 0: News 1: Weather forecast 2: Drama 3: Baseball 4: Soccer 5: Sumo 6: Other sports 7: Song program 8: Cooking program

The user depresses the program list key 48 (3) of the remote controller 48 shown in FIG. 3 to decode the transmitted data and convert the data into a bit map. (Part of it) CRT of TV7
To display. At the upper part of the display unit, a display column for each channel from channel 1 to channel N having a constant width W is provided. For example, in the case of Tokyo area, there are channels 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 as VHF channels, and channels 5, 7, as satellite broadcasting channels.
There is 11. A display area having a width W is provided for each of these channels. In the display area of each channel, programs (programs) with an earlier broadcast time are displayed above and those with a later broadcast time are displayed below in the same manner as TV program columns published in newspapers and the like. . The programs at the same time for each channel are arranged on the same horizontal line.

It is also possible to make a recording reservation by designating a specific program 81 from this screen. For this purpose, the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 are operated to move the frame (cursor) 82 for selecting a program, and the program 81 desired to be reserved for recording is selected. Next, the recording reservation key 48 (1) is pressed to realize the recording reservation.

However, in order to find a program for which a recording reservation is desired from the program list, the user must search the program list in full unless the start time and the broadcast channel of the program are known in advance. In addition, the program list includes programs of a plurality of genres, such as the weather forecast 8
3, food 84, first news 85, drama 81, second
The news 86, etc. are displayed at different time positions on different channels. For example, when trying to record all the programs belonging to a certain genre, the programs belonging to that genre are searched one by one and recorded individually. You have to set up a reservation.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the user presses the condition setting key 48 (9) of the remote controller 48 to pre-input the conditions of the program for which the recording reservation is desired, and the search key 4
By pressing 8 (8), a program meeting the input conditions is searched for and a recording reservation is made.

The procedure will be described below. The user operates the condition setting key 48 (9) to set the condition. Then, the infrared signal corresponding to this operation is output from the remote controller 48, photoelectrically converted in the remote controller receiving circuit 50, and then output to the command decoder 51. The command decoder 51 decodes the input signal and outputs a command corresponding to the input to the CPU 41. The CPU 41 causes the NTSC signal generation circuit 45 to
In order to display the condition selection screen shown in FIG. 6A on the TV 7, the video output switching control circuit 49 switches the switch sw1 to the b side. The condition selection screen has a genre 101 and a keyword 102 as condition setting items.

Next, the condition setting method will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG. All of these series of processes are written in the program of the ROM 43 in advance before the product is shipped.

First, the CPU 41, as shown in FIG.
In step S1, the TSC signal generation circuit 45
The condition selection screen is displayed on V7. As described above, the genre 101 and the key wort 102 are displayed on this screen (see FIG. 6A), and prompt the user to select either one.

On the condition selection screen, immediately after display, genre 1
01 is selected. The selected item is shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), it has a rectangular frame. The user can select either one of the up, down, left, and right keys 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 by operating the up key and the down key.

In step S2, the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2)
It is determined whether or not the downward key of is pressed, and if it is pressed, the keyword is selected in step S3, and step S3 is selected.
If it is not pressed, it is determined in step S4 whether or not the up, down, left, right keys 48 (2) of the upward keys are pressed. If pressed, the genre is selected in step S5, and the process returns to step S1. If not pressed, the process proceeds to step S6.

In step S6, it is determined whether or not the decision key 48 (5) has been pressed. If it has been pressed, the process ends. If it has not, the selection key 48 (5) is pressed in step S7.
It is determined whether (4) is pressed. Select key 48
If (4) is not pressed, the process returns to step S1 and the processes of steps S1 to S7 are repeated.

When the select key 48 (4) is operated, the currently selected item is selected. And step S8
Then, when it is determined that the genre 101 is selected,
When it is determined that the genre 101 has not been selected and the keyword 102 has been selected, the process proceeds to the keyword selection process of step S10, and when these processes are completed, the process proceeds to step S1. Return and repeat the process.

Next, the genre selection processing in step S9 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, in step S21, the genre selection screen shown in FIG. 6B is displayed. A plurality of genre items 103 are displayed on this screen, prompting the user to select from these. Immediately after the genre selection screen is displayed, the genre item shown at the top (in this example, '
News') is selected. As shown in FIG. 6B, the selected genre item is surrounded by a rectangular frame.

In step S22, if the downward key of the up / down / left / right key 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 is operated, the process proceeds to step S23. If not, the process proceeds to step S27. In step S23, it is determined whether or not the bottom genre item is currently selected on the screen, and if the bottom genre item is not selected, in step S24,
The genre item immediately below is selected, and the process returns to step S22.

If the genre item at the bottom is selected, it is determined in step S25 whether or not there is a genre item below the currently selected genre item. If not, the process proceeds to step S22. Returning, if there is, scrolling one line upward in step S26, and proceeds to step S23.

In step S27, if the up, down, left, right keys 48 (2) of the up / down key of the remote controller 48 are operated, the process proceeds to step S28, and if not operated, step S32.
Proceed to. In step S28, it is determined whether the top genre item is currently selected on the screen, and if the top genre item is not selected, step S29.
Then, the genre item one level above is selected and the process returns to step S22.

When the top genre item is selected, it is determined in step S30 whether or not the genre item is present above the currently selected genre item. If not, the process proceeds to step S22. Returning, if it exists, in step S31, the line is scrolled down one line, and the process proceeds to step S29.

That is, when the lowest genre item on the screen is selected and the downward key is operated,
Scroll up (S26). Similarly, when the top genre item is selected on the screen and the upward key is operated, the screen is scrolled down (S27).

Next, in step S32, the selection key 48
It is judged whether (4) is pressed, and if it is not pressed,
Returning to step S22, the process is repeated and the selection key 48
When (4) is operated, the bit of the selected genre item in the genre list shown in FIG. 9 is set to "" in step S33.
It is set to 1 ", and the process ends.

In the structure of the genre list, as shown in FIG. 9, a 1-bit area is assigned to each genre. If this is "1", the genre item has been selected. If it is 0 ", it means that it is not selected. In the example of FIG. 9, news 11
1. News 1 out of multiple genre items such as 1, weather forecast 112, drama 113, baseball 114, soccer 115, etc.
11 and the drama 113 are selected. And when the genre is selected in this way,
The process is returned again, and the condition setting screen of FIG.

Next, the keyword selection process will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, step S
At 51, the keyword selection screen shown in FIG. 6C is displayed. A plurality of keyword items 104 are displayed on this screen, prompting the user to select from these. Immediately after the keyword selection screen is displayed, the keyword item shown at the top (“Taro Miyazawa” in this embodiment) is selected. The selected item is surrounded by a rectangular frame as shown in FIG.

In step S52, if the downward key of the up / down / left / right key 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 is operated, the process proceeds to step S53. If not operated, the process proceeds to step S57. In step S53, it is determined whether or not the lowest keyword item 104 is currently selected on the screen. If the lowest keyword item 104 is not selected, in step S54, the keyword item 104 immediately below is selected. Is selected, and the process returns to step S52.

When the lowest keyword item 104 is selected, it is determined in step S55 whether or not the keyword item 104 exists below the currently selected keyword item 104. Step S
Returning to 52, if there is one, in step S56, scroll up one line and proceed to step S54.

In step S57, if the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 are operated in the upward direction, the process proceeds to step S58. If not operated, the process proceeds to step S62.
Proceed to. In step S58, it is determined whether the top keyword item 104 is currently selected on the screen, and if the top keyword item 104 is not selected,
It returns to step S52.

If the topmost keyword item 104 is selected, it is determined in step S59 whether or not the keyword item 104 exists above the currently selected keyword item 104. Step S
Returning to 52, if there is one, scrolling down one line in step S60, selecting the keyword item 104 one level above in step S61, and returning to step S52.

That is, when the lowest keyword item 104 on the screen is selected and the downward key is operated, the screen is scrolled up (S56). Similarly, when the uppermost keyword item 104 is selected on the screen and the upward key is operated, the screen is scrolled down (S60).

Next, in step S62, the selection key 48
It is judged whether (4) is pressed, and if it is not pressed,
When the selection key 48 (4) is operated in step S63, the selection bit 123 of the selected keyword item 104 in the keyword list 120 shown in FIG. 11 is set to "1" in step S65, and the process ends. To do.

The above keyword list 120 is shown in FIG.
, 255 keywords, that is, the first keyword 121 (1) to the 255th keyword 121 (25
5), the number 122 of currently registered keywords is written at the head position of the first keyword 121 (1). In the diagram before the keyword registration in FIG. 11A, the number of keywords 122 is “4”, so that it is currently 4
It indicates that the individual keywords are registered.

FIG. 11A before this keyword input processing
In the example of, the selection bit 123 indicates that "election" is selected and no other keywords are selected. A selection bit 123 is assigned to each keyword in a 1-bit area. If the selection bit 123 is "1", the keyword is selected, and if it is "0", it is not selected. Is shown. Then, when the keyword is selected in this manner, the process is returned to the condition setting screen of FIG. 6A.

The keyword is not transmitted from the broadcasting station,
The user registers. Therefore, if the selection key is not pressed in step S62, it is determined in step S63 whether the rightward key of the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 is pressed. If not, step S63 is performed.
Returning to 52, if pressed, the keyword input process of step S64 is executed, and the process returns to step S51 to repeat the process.

Next, the keyword input process of step S64 of FIG. 10 will be described with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. First, since the rightward key of the up / down / left / right key 48 (2) of the remote controller 48 is pressed, the keyword input 105 (see FIG. 6 (c)) is selected in step S81. As a result, the screen moves to the keyword input screen shown in FIG.

This keyword input screen is composed of the upper part: screen name, the middle part: input area, and the lower part: setting instruction display. The frame 106 is operated by the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2):
Input area or lower: You can move to the setting instruction display. In the example of the screen in FIG. 6D, the frame 106 is in the middle part: the input area, and the characters are displayed therein, but at the beginning, this part is blank, and the cursor 107 is located at the lower left of the frame 106. Is displayed. Here, the user operates the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2) and the select key 48 of the remote controller 48.
(4), the conversion key 48 (6), the enter key 48 (5), and the delete key 48 (7) are used to input a keyword.

First, by using the left / right keys of the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2), a hiragana is displayed at the cursor 107 in FIG. 6 (d). That is, in step S82, it is determined whether or not the rightward key of the up / down / left / right key 48 (2) is pressed. If not, the process proceeds to step S86, and if it is pressed, the character is placed at the cursor position in step S83. It is determined whether or not there is, and if not, "A" is displayed at the cursor position in step S84, and the process returns to step S82. If there is, in step S85, the displayed character is
Change to the next character in the Japanese syllabary order and return to step S82. By this processing, the displayed characters are changed to "A" → "I" → "U" → ... With the rightward key of the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2).

Similarly, in step S86, it is determined whether or not the leftward key of the up / down / left / right key 48 (2) is pressed,
If it is not pressed, the process proceeds to step S90. If it is pressed, it is determined in step S87 whether or not there is a character at the cursor position. If it is not pressed, "a" is displayed at the cursor position in step S88. , And returns to step S82.
If there is, in step S89, the displayed character is converted into the next character in the reverse Japanese syllabary order, and in step S82.
Return to. By this process, left key "I" → "A"
→ ”N” →…, and change the displayed characters.

Next, in step S90, the selection key 48
It is judged whether (4) is pressed, and if it is pressed,
In step S91, the input character before conversion is determined, the cursor 107 is extended to the next input position on the left side, and the process returns to step S82. If not pressed, step S82
Proceed to 92. In step S92, the conversion key 48 (6)
It is determined whether or not is pressed. If it is pressed, in step S93, the character string on which the cursor 107 is drawn is converted into kanji and the process proceeds to step S94. If not, the process proceeds to step S95. move on.

At step S95, the enter key 48 (5)
It is determined whether or not has been pressed, and if it has been pressed, the input character is confirmed in step S96, the cursor 107 is moved to the next input position, left adjacent, and the process returns to step S82.
If it has not been pressed, the process proceeds to step S99.

On the other hand, in step S94, the conversion key 48
If (6) is pressed again, if it is pressed, the next candidate kanji registered in advance is displayed in step S97, the process returns to step S94, and if it is not pressed, It proceeds to step S98. In step S98, it is determined whether or not the enter key 48 (5) has been pressed. If it has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S96, and if it has not been pressed, the process returns to step S94.

By doing this, if the converted Kanji is not the desired one, the conversion key 48
By continuing to operate (6), it is possible to change to the next candidate kanji. When the desired Chinese character is displayed, the user can confirm the input of that Chinese character by pressing the enter key 48 (5). The screen of FIG. 6 (e) is
An example in which the hiragana character string "tin" is converted into the kanji "bell" is shown.

In step S99, the delete key 48 (7)
If it is pressed, the process proceeds to step S100. If it is not pressed, step S100 is performed.
Proceed to 101. In step S100, it is determined whether or not one or more characters are present in the frame 106, and if they are present, the rightmost one character is erased in step S102.
2 returns to step S82, and if not present, immediately returns to step S82.

In step S101, the up / down / left / right keys 48
(2) It is determined whether or not the down key is pressed. If it is pressed, the process proceeds to step S103, and if it is not pressed, the process returns to step S82 in FIG. Step S1
03, a frame 106 is displayed on the screen shown in FIG.
"Select" (lower row: setting instruction display) is selected with, and the process proceeds to step S104.

In step S104, the up / down / left / right keys 48
(2) It is determined whether or not the up key is pressed, and if it is pressed, the process proceeds to step S105, the "setting" is deselected from the screen shown in FIG. 6 (f), and the process proceeds to step S82 in FIG. If the up key is not pressed, the process proceeds to step S106.

That is, when the input of the keyword desired to be registered is completed, the "down" key is operated to select "setting". If you want to continue entering keywords, you can return by pressing the up key.

Middle row: When registering the keyword displayed in the input area frame, after selecting "SET" in step S104, the selection key 48 is selected in step S106.
If the operation of (4) is judged and the selection key 48 (4) is pressed, the process proceeds to step S107, and if not pressed, the process returns to step S104. In step S107, the keyword entered is added to the keyword list
In step S108, the number of keywords is increased by +.
Then, the process ends.

By performing the processing as described above, FIG.
(B) shows an example in which the keyword "Saburo Nagashima" is registered. The number of keywords 122 has increased from four to five.

When the input of the keyword is completed in this way, the process is returned to the condition setting screen of FIG. 6C. After inputting the conditions of all programs for which recording reservation is desired, operate the enter key 48 (5)
U41 is a video output switching control circuit 49
Then, the switch sw1 is switched to the side a in FIG.

With the above operation, the process for setting the condition is completed. Then, based on these entered conditions,
The program search processing will be described.

The user operates the search key 48 of the remote controller 48.
By operating (8), a program is searched based on the input conditions. The flow of the program search process is shown in FIG.
It is shown in the flowchart. This process is roughly divided into two. First, it is checked as follows whether or not the keyword selected from the keyword list exists in the program content 33 (see FIG. 4).

First, in step S121, a variable i representing the number of retrieved keywords is initialized to "1", and in step S122 it is determined whether the number of keywords is greater than or equal to the variable i. If the search for the keyword has not been completed), the process proceeds to step S123. If not (if the search for all the keywords has been completed), the process proceeds to step S124.

In step S123, the i-th keyword is read, and the flow advances to step S125. Step S1
In 25, it is judged whether or not the selected bit is set in the read keyword (that is, whether it is "1"), and if so, the process proceeds to step S126, and if not, i is incremented by 1 in step S127, Step S1
Return to 22.

In step S126, the first program content 3
3 is read and the process proceeds to step S128. Step S1
In 28, the read keyword is this program content 33
If it is not included, the process proceeds to step S130. If it is included, the process proceeds to step S1.
29, the number of included keywords is added to the degree of coincidence 71 (see FIG. 4) with the condition of the program, and step S130
Proceed to.

In step S130, it is determined whether or not all programs have been searched. If the search is not completed, the next program content 33 is read in step S131, the process returns to step S128, and all programs are searched. In step S132, the variable i is incremented by 1, and the process returns to step S122.

In this way, all the program contents 33 are searched for the keyword for which the selection bit is set.

Next, a program of a genre that matches the selected genre is searched for in the processing of step S124 and thereafter as follows. In step S124, first, the genre portion of the first program is read. Next, step S1
In 33, it is compared with the genre list (FIG. 9) to check whether the bit in the genre list matches the genre in which it is set. If they do not match, the process proceeds to step S135, and if they match. In step S134, 1 is added to the degree of coincidence 71 with the condition of the program, and the process proceeds to step S135.

In step S135, it is determined whether or not all programs have been searched. If the search is not completed, the genre portion of the next program is read in step S136, the process returns to step S133, and all programs are searched. If retrieved, the process ends.

By this search processing, a program having a higher degree of coincidence 71 with the condition of the program desired by the user for recording reservation will have a larger value in the degree of coincidence 71 with the condition.

Next, the CPU 41 creates the sort list shown in FIG. 15 in order to display the sorted screen in which the programs are arranged on the screen in the descending order of the degree of coincidence 71. As shown in FIG. 15 (a), the structure of the sort list before sorting is such that the channel numbers and the program information numbers are alternately arranged, and the program is specified from these two pieces of information.

The sorted list after sorting is shown in FIG.
As shown in, the programs are displayed from the left side in descending order of the degree of coincidence 71 with the condition. An end mark is added at the end. That is, the sort process simply searches all the program data shown in FIG. 4, finds the programs in the descending order of the degree of agreement with the conditions, and writes them in the sort list. In the example of FIG. 15, the degree of coincidence 71 with the condition of the program having the program information number of 7 on the channel 4 is the highest, and then the condition of the program information number 6 of the channel 2 and the condition of the program information number 5 on the channel 3 are satisfied. It shows that the degree of coincidence 71 is high.

When the sort list is created in this way,
The CPU 41 is a video output switching control circuit 4
The switch sw1 is switched to the b side in FIG. 3 via 9, and the programs shown in the beginning of the sort list are sequentially read from the RAM 42, the program data is converted into bitmap data, and stored in the RAM 42 again. . The data expanded in the RAM 42 is stored in the CPU 4
Under the control of No. 1, it is read at a predetermined timing and NT
It is supplied to the SC signal generation circuit 45. The NTSC signal generation circuit 45 converts the input data into an NTSC signal and outputs it. This signal is sent to the TV via the switch sw1.
(Fig. 1) is output and displayed.

In this way, the program list 150, which is the searched TV channel data after sorting, is displayed as shown in FIG. The user selects a program for which a recording reservation is desired from the program list 150 by using the remote controller 48 and makes a recording reservation. The selection of the program is performed by moving the frame 151, and the movement is performed by operating the up / down / left / right keys 48 (2) of the remote controller 48. In the example of FIG. 16, the news 152 of channel 2 is selected.
The frame 151 is moved to the program for which the recording reservation is desired, and the selection key 48 (4) is operated to make the recording reservation target program. For the program selected as the target, like the drama 153 of channel 3, a reservation mark 154 is displayed in the upper right.
Is displayed. After selecting all the programs for which recording reservation is desired, by operating the recording reservation key 48 (1),
Complete the recording reservation.

If all are selected as the recording reservation targets, it is possible to make recording reservations for all programs based on a specific condition. When selecting all, it is troublesome to select and move the programs one by one, so when selecting the recording reservation key 48 (1) without selecting anything,
All are automatically selected. At this time, the CPU 41
The program data targeted for recording reservation is read from the RAM 42. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the program data stored in the RAM 42 includes the broadcast channel, broadcast start time, and broadcast time of the program. CP
The U41 outputs the data regarding the broadcast start time and the broadcast time to the recording reservation control circuit 54. The recording reservation control circuit 54 stores the input data.

After the recording reservation is made in this way,
When the time measured by the timer circuit 47 reaches the pre-stored program start time, the recording / playback circuit 44 is controlled to start the reserved recording operation of the channel corresponding to the stored data. The recording / playback circuit 44 includes a BS tuner 1
6 or the output of a VHF tuner (not shown) is input, the BS tuner 16 or the VHF tuner is activated at the reserved time, and the video signal is recorded on a magnetic tape (not shown). Then, when the time corresponding to the broadcast time has elapsed after the start of the reserved recording, the recording reservation control circuit 54 controls the recording / reproducing circuit 44 to stop the reserved recording operation.

When the reproduction is instructed, the video signal reproduced and output from the recording / reproducing circuit 44 is output and displayed on the TV 7 through the switch sw1.

As described above, according to the recording reservation system of the present embodiment, the broadcast program and the television section data generated by the workstation 2 are broadcast from the broadcast center 3 and BS.
The tuner 40 receives the broadcast program and the TV section data,
The TV section data received by the BS tuner 40 is stored in the RAM 42, and the TV section data stored in the RAM 42 is stored as T
Display on V7. Then, the CPU 41 performs a search process on the TV section data stored in the RAM 42 based on the search condition from the remote controller 48, and further generates search TV section data after sorting, and stores the search TV section data in the RAM.
Since the TV 7 displays the searched TV section data stored in the RAM 42 and stored in the RAM 42, it is possible to easily and reliably search for the broadcast program information that meets the search condition designated by the remote controller 48.

In the above embodiment, the recording means is the VCR6.
Although the recording / reproducing circuit 44 for recording information on the magnetic tape therein is not limited to this, it may be an optical disk device for recording an image on a phase change optical disk or a magneto-optical disk device for recording an image on a magneto-optical disk. Further, the same applies to reservation of a recording device for recording audio signals such as music, or a device for recording digital signals (for example, digital information such as news from communication satellites) (devices such as DAT and optical disks). It goes without saying that you can do it.

Although the broadcasting center 3 for BS broadcasting is used as the broadcasting means, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same effect can be obtained by a system using a broadcasting center for cable broadcasting using optical fibers or the like. be able to.

[0090]

As described above, according to the program information search system of the present invention, the broadcast program information stored in the storage means is searched in accordance with the search condition.
By inputting a predetermined search condition, it becomes possible to easily and reliably make a recording reservation of desired broadcast program information.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of a recording reservation system for recording a broadcast program according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a format diagram showing a format configuration of television section data generated by the workstation of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the VCR shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a format diagram showing a format configuration of television section data stored in a RAM of FIG.

5 is a diagram showing an example of display on the TV of TV section data stored in a RAM of the TV shown in FIG. 3;

6 is a diagram showing a display example of a condition selection screen on a TV by the remote controller of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of search condition selection processing by the recording reservation system in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of genre selection processing in FIG. 7.

9 is a format diagram showing a format configuration of a genre list generated by the genre selection processing of FIG.

10 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of keyword selection processing in FIG. 7. FIG.

11 is a format diagram showing a configuration of a format of a keyword list generated by the keyword selection processing of FIG.

12 is a first flowchart illustrating the flow of keyword input processing of FIG.

13 is a second flowchart illustrating the flow of the keyword input process of FIG.

14 is a flowchart illustrating a flow of search processing by the recording reservation system in FIG.

FIG. 15 is a format diagram showing a configuration of a format of a sort list generated by the search processing of FIG.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of display of searched television section data on the TV by the search processing of FIG. 14.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 large-scale computer 2 workstation 3 broadcasting center 4 satellite 5 outdoor equipment 6 VCR 7 TV 40 BS tuner 41 CPU 42 RAM 43 ROM 44 recording / playback circuit 45 NTSC signal generation circuit 46 decoder 47 timer circuit 48 remote control 48 (1) recording reservation key 48 (2) Up / Down / Left / Right key 48 (3) Program list key 48 (4) Selection key 48 (5) Enter key 48 (6) Conversion key 48 (7) Delete key 48 (8) Search key 48 (9) Condition setting Key 49 Video output switching control circuit 50 Remote control receiving circuit 51 Command decoder 52 Power on / off control circuit 53 Power supply 54 Recording reservation control circuit 55 BS tuner control circuit sw1 switch

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A program information retrieval system for retrieving broadcast program information transmitted via a satellite, comprising: storage means for storing broadcast program information; and retrieval conditions for the broadcast program information stored in the storage means. A program information search system, comprising: input means for performing the search; and search means for searching the broadcast program information in accordance with the search condition input by the input means. 2. The program information search system according to claim 2, wherein the search means searches the broadcast program information in correspondence with the degree of satisfaction of the search condition. 3. The program information search system according to claim 1, wherein the search condition is a genre or a keyword of the broadcast program information.