KR100662142B1 - Method of auto-setting channel and television receiver thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic channel setting method and a television broadcast receiver that can simplify a user's editing of an automatically set channel by removing the channel from a category that the user does not watch at all. . The automatic channel setting method according to the present invention includes the steps of storing channel information corresponding to a channel and a category; Receiving an automatic channel setting command and selection information on a category not preferred by the user; If an automatic channel setting command is input, extracting an effective channel; Detecting a channel corresponding to a non-preferred category selected by the user among the extracted valid channels according to the channel information, and performing channel setting to the remaining valid channels except for the detected channel; . The television broadcast receiver having an automatic channel setting function according to the present invention includes a memory unit for storing channel information associated with a channel and a category; A user interface unit providing an interface with a user; A tuner for tuning a broadcast signal; A broadcast signal processor for processing an output signal of the tuner and extracting an effective channel; When an automatic channel setting command and selection information for a category not preferred by the user are input through the user interface unit, an effective channel is extracted based on signal strength, and the user sets one of the extracted effective channels according to the channel information. And a controller for detecting a channel corresponding to a non-preferred category and controlling channel setting to be carried out to the remaining valid channels except for the detected channel.

Television, channel, audio broadcasting

Description

Automatic channel setting method and television broadcasting receiver {METHOD OF AUTO-SETTING CHANNEL AND TELEVISION RECEIVER THEREOF}

1 is a block diagram of a television broadcast receiver according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a structural diagram of channel or program information according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a channel information structure diagram according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart of an automatic channel setting method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 and 6 illustrate display examples of an OSD menu according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: control unit

102: micom

104: user interface unit

106: first memory unit

108: second memory section

110: audio signal input unit

112: tuner

114: broadcast signal processing unit

116: video signal processing unit

118: Audio Decoder

120: audio signal output unit

122: video signal output unit

The present invention relates to a television broadcast receiver, and more particularly, to an automatic channel setting method for removing a channel of a category according to a user's request among effective channels at the time of automatic channel setting, and a television broadcast receiver accordingly.

The recent increase in the number of cable channels (CATV) and HDTV broadcasting has led to a significant increase in the number of broadcast channels compared to the past.

According to this trend, the viewer may be in a situation where it is difficult to distinguish even where the channel he wishes to tune among the numerous channels is.

Recently, broadcasting stations transmit information about each broadcasting program in a specific frequency band of a broadcasting signal, and a television broadcasting receiver detects and restores the information to obtain rough information about program start and end times or program contents. KBPS (Korea Broadcast Program Service) method was developed and put into practice.

In addition, the HDTV broadcasting station periodically transmits the electronic program guide (ELECTRONIC PROGRAM GUIDE) information, and the technology for the television broadcast receiver to provide a program guide according to the electronic program guide information has been developed and put into practical use.

As described above, as analog or digital television stations provide various information about programs or channels to a television broadcast receiver, efforts to provide differentiated services to viewers using the above information have been continued.

For example, Korean Patent No. 1999-043030, filed with the Korean Patent Office under the name of “TV receiver with automatic tuning of the same personality program when switching channels,” allows the user to perform channel switching while selecting a specific broadcast program type. If possible, it provides a television broadcast receiver capable of selecting and selecting only a channel on which a program of this type is being broadcast.

The television broadcast receiver includes a key input unit for executing broadcast tuning and designating a program to be tuned to, a OSD generating unit for outputting OSD guided subtitles to designate a field of a program to be searched according to a predetermined control signal, and the OSD generating unit A mixer for mixing the caption image signal and the image signal output from the image processor and outputting the image through a CRT screen, a program classification data storage unit for storing program classification data set through the key input unit, and a composite image output from the image detector. The KBPS code extracting unit extracts KBPS code information ubiquitous in the contracted area of the broadcast signal from the signal, and decodes the KBPS code information extracted by the KBPS code extracting unit to detect the classification data indicating the characteristics of the program. Decoder, and the program search function through the key input unit In this case, when the OSD generation unit is driven to output guide subtitles, and program classification information is set in the program classification data storage unit, sequential channel switching is performed until the set information matches the data detected by the decoder. And a control unit for controlling the tuner to be executed.

However, the technology of selecting and selecting only channels in which a program of a type specified by a user is broadcasted using the KBPS may cause inconvenience of having to designate a program of a desired type at all times. When not specified, there was a problem that channel switching for all effective channels including channels that the user does not watch at all is implemented. In order to solve this problem, the user would find a channel that he did not watch and delete the channel.

Accordingly, the present invention is urgently required to develop a technology that can simplify the user's editing of the automatically set channel by removing the channel from the category that the user does not watch at all from the automatic channel setting.

The present invention is to overcome the above-mentioned problems, the automatic channel setting method that can simplify the user's editing work on the automatically set channel by removing from the automatic channel setting for the channel of the category that the user does not watch at all And a television broadcast receiver.

The automatic channel setting method according to the present invention for achieving the above object and to solve the problems of the prior art comprises the steps of: storing channel information corresponding to channels and categories; Receiving an automatic channel setting command and selection information on a category not preferred by the user; If an automatic channel setting command is input, extracting an effective channel; Detecting a channel corresponding to a non-preferred category selected by the user among the extracted valid channels according to the channel information, and performing channel setting to the remaining valid channels except for the detected channel; .

The automatic channel setting method may further include receiving the information including a category for the channel and configuring the channel information.

The television broadcast receiver having an automatic channel setting function according to the present invention includes a memory unit for storing channel information associated with a channel and a category; A user interface unit providing an interface with a user; A tuner for tuning a broadcast signal; A broadcast signal processor for processing an output signal of the tuner and extracting an effective channel; When an automatic channel setting command and selection information for a category not preferred by the user are input through the user interface unit, an effective channel is extracted based on signal strength, and the user sets one of the extracted effective channels according to the channel information. And a controller for detecting a channel corresponding to a non-preferred category and controlling channel setting to be carried out to the remaining valid channels except for the detected channel.

The present invention is applicable to an analog television broadcast receiver receiving KBPS code information and a digital television broadcast receiver receiving an electronic program guide, but the following description will be given by way of example applied to a digital television broadcast receiver for convenience.

The configuration of a digital television broadcast receiver according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The control unit 100 of the television broadcast receiver not only controls the television broadcast receiver as a whole, but also performs channel switching according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The microcomputer 102 provides the control unit 100 with information according to a user command through the user interface unit 104. The user interface 104 receives various commands from the user by using a keypad or a remote controller and provides the same to the microcomputer 102. The first and second memory units 106 store a variety of information including a processing program of the controller 100, and particularly, store electronic program guide information and channel information according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the electronic program guide information includes identification information about a channel or a program, a name of the channel or a program, information about a channel or a program category, and the like. The channel information includes a plurality of channels and category information for each channel, as shown in FIG. 3.

The tuner 112 tunes a predetermined channel among the broadcast signals under the control of the controller 100 and provides the tuner 112 to the broadcast signal processor 114. The broadcast signal processor 114 processes the broadcast signal tuned by the tuner 112 and outputs the broadcast signal to the video signal processor 116. The broadcast signal processor 114 controls a signal strength measured for each channel according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 100, to enable effective channel measurement of the controller 100. The video signal processor 116 includes a TS decoder and a video decoder, and converts a TS provided by the broadcast signal processor 114 into an audio stream, a video stream, and an information stream, and the audio stream is an audio decoder 118. The video stream is decoded and provided to the video signal output unit 122, and the information stream is provided to the controller 100. In this case, the information stream includes the electronic program guide information. The audio decoder 118 decodes the audio stream and provides it to the audio signal output unit 120.

The automatic channel setting method of the present invention applicable to the television broadcast receiver will now be described with reference to FIG.

The controller 100 checks whether the user requests automatic channel setting through the user interface 104 (step 400).

The automatic channel setting request may be implemented through an OSD menu as shown in FIG. 5, and the OSD menu may be configured with items such as a channel, an image, an audio, a time, a general, and the like. It can be composed of items such as auto channel, channel editing, signal strength, broadcast name, broadcast setting, and screen input. In particular, the item of the automatic channel may be composed of a setting item and items for selecting a category of the channel, that is, a religious broadcast, a music broadcast, a sports broadcast, and a movie broadcast. The user may select an automatic channel item through the OSD menu.

When the user selects an automatic channel item, the controller 100 guides category items for channels stored in the first or second memory units 106 and 108 (step 404).

By viewing the guide of the category items for the channel, the user can operate the user interface 104 to select a category to be automatically removed during automatic channel setting, that is, a channel of a category not preferred by the user, and the controller 100 Table [V] is displayed on the category side for the guided channel according to the user's selection as shown in FIG.

When the channel of the category to be automatically removed is selected when the automatic channel is set through the above process, the controller 100 measures the signal strength for each broadcast channel and extracts the effective channel (step 408). When the extraction of the effective channel is completed, the controller 100 performs channel setting to the remaining valid channels except for the valid channels corresponding to the category requested to be deleted among the extracted valid channels according to channel information.

If the user does not select a category of a channel to be automatically removed when the automatic channel is set, the controller 100 measures the signal strength for each broadcast channel, extracts an effective channel, and performs channel setting with the extracted effective channel. (Steps 412,414).

As described above, the present invention has an effect of simplifying the editing operation of the user for the automatically set channel by removing the channel from the category that the user does not watch at all from the automatic channel setting.

As described above, the present invention has been described by way of limited embodiments and drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, which can be variously modified and modified by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Modifications are possible.

Accordingly, the spirit of the present invention should be understood only by the claims set forth below, and all equivalent or equivalent modifications thereof will belong to the scope of the present invention.

Claims (4)

In the automatic channel setting method of the television broadcast receiver, Storing channel information associated with channels and categories; Receiving an automatic channel setting command and selection information on a category not preferred by the user; If an automatic channel setting command is input, extracting an effective channel; And Detecting a channel corresponding to an unfavorable category selected by the user among the extracted effective channels according to the channel information, and performing channel setting to remaining valid channels except for the detected channel; Automatic channel setting method comprising a. The method of claim 1, And receiving the information including the category for the channel to configure the channel information. In a television broadcast receiver having an automatic channel setting function, A memory unit for storing channel information associated with a channel and a category; A user interface unit providing an interface with a user; A tuner for tuning a broadcast signal; A broadcast signal processor for processing an output signal of the tuner and extracting an effective channel; And When an automatic channel setting command and selection information for a category not preferred by the user are input through the user interface unit, an effective channel is extracted based on signal strength, and the user sets one of the extracted effective channels according to the channel information. A control unit that detects a channel corresponding to a non-preferred category and controls the channel setting to be performed to the remaining valid channels except for the detected channel. Television broadcast receiver comprising a. The method of claim 3, And the controller is configured to receive the information including the category for the channel to configure the channel information.

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