KR101031437B1 - Display device and channel strucring method - Google Patents

Abstract

A channel setting method of a display apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include: requesting execution of a first channel search mode from a user; Retrieving network information table (NIT) information by using a frequency domain corresponding to all channels as a range according to the execution request of the first channel search mode; And constructing a channel list using the retrieved NIT information.

Description

Display device and channel strucring method}

The present invention relates to a display apparatus, and more particularly, to a display apparatus and a channel setting method thereof for constructing a channel list using NIT information.

BACKGROUND In general, a display device includes a television, and in recent years, a television technology has developed a method of transmitting broadcast signals due to the development of broadcast technology, and accordingly, interest in digital television using a digital transmission method has increased.

Digital televisions transmit analog broadcast signals in digital form, minimizing the effects of noise and facilitating the reproduction of the original image.

Recently, such display apparatuses can receive various broadcasting channels through cable or satellite broadcasting, unlike the past, which can only receive over-the-air channels, providing users with at least 50 channels and over 100 channels. There are many difficulties in effectively managing such a large number of channels.

1 is a view showing a channel setting method of a display apparatus according to the prior art.

Referring to FIG. 1, first, a specific channel for providing network information table (NIT) information is set for automatic channel setting (S100). That is, the cable broadcast provider transmits NIT information including information on all broadcast programs that are currently serviced in a broadcast signal of a specific channel. Accordingly, the user sets a channel in which the NIT information exists in order to know currently provided program information. Here, the information on the set channel is frequency information, modulation degree information, symbol information, and network ID information.

Subsequently, according to an automatic channel search command input from a user, a broadcast signal transmitted through the set specific channel is received (S101).

In operation S102, it is determined whether NIT information exists in the received broadcast signal.

Subsequently, if the NIT information exists in the received broadcast signal (S102), the NIT information is extracted from the broadcast signal (S103), and the channel search is performed using the extracted NIT information (S104). .

In addition, if the NIT information does not exist in the received broadcast signal (S102), the channel search operation is sequentially performed in order of low area to high area according to the frequency band (S105).

However, in order to perform the channel search operation as described above, the user must recognize frequency information provided with the NIT information, and in a situation where the frequency information provided with the NIT information is not recognized, the entire channel must be sequentially searched. There is discomfort. In addition, since a channel list is constructed using only NIT information provided through a specific channel, when NIT information having non-overlapping channel information is provided through a plurality of channels, there is a problem in that a complete channel cannot be formed.

In the proposed embodiment, the channel setting process can be performed in a short time using NIT information without a separate tuning process.

In addition, in the proposed embodiment, even when the frequency information provided with the NIT information is not recognized, the channel setting process can be easily performed by checking the frequency information provided with the NIT information in a short time.

The technical problems to be achieved in the proposed embodiment are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned above are clear to those skilled in the art to which the proposed embodiments belong from the following description. Can be understood.

A channel setting method of a display apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention may include: requesting execution of a first channel search mode from a user; Retrieving network information table (NIT) information by using a frequency domain corresponding to all channels as a range according to the execution request of the first channel search mode; And constructing a channel list using the retrieved NIT information.

In addition, the display device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a user input unit for receiving a request command from the user; A broadcast signal receiver sequentially receiving broadcast signals corresponding to all channels transmitted from the outside when a first channel search mode execution is requested from the user input unit; And a control unit for retrieving NIT information from the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiving unit. When the NIT information is retrieved from the received broadcast signal, the control unit searches for a channel list using the retrieved NIT information. Configure.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the user can eliminate the inconvenience of having to set up by recognizing the frequency information in which the network information table (NIT) information exists, and the cable broadcaster can change the frequency at which the NIT information is provided at any time. You can secure flexibility.

In addition, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of frequencies in which NIT information exists may be flexibly stored to reduce a channel search time, and a complete channel list may be constructed using the plurality of NIT information.

The proposed embodiment will be described.

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the spirit of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments presented, and other inventions which are further deteriorated by addition, change, deletion, etc. of other components, or other embodiments included within the scope of the present invention can be easily made. I can suggest.

The term used in the present invention was selected as a general term widely used as possible, but in some cases, a term arbitrarily selected by the applicant, in which case the meaning is described in detail in the description of the invention, the name of a simple term It is to be clear that the present invention is to be understood as a meaning of the term.

In other words, in the following description, the word 'comprising' does not exclude the presence of other elements or steps than those listed.

2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a display apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the display apparatus includes a broadcast signal receiver 200 sequentially receiving broadcast signals corresponding to all channels transmitted from the outside when the first channel search mode is executed, and the broadcast signal receiver 200. A video signal processor 201 extracts a video signal from the broadcast signal received through the video signal, and displays a video signal processed by the video signal processor 201 for signal processing to display the extracted video signal. A unit 202, a memory unit 203 for storing frequency information and a channel list of channels for which NIT information is found when the second channel search mode is executed, a user input unit 204 for receiving a request command from a user, and a channel; Menu screen generation unit 205 for generating a menu screen such as a search setting screen in the form of an OSD (On Screen Display) and the broadcast signal receiver 200 The NIT information is retrieved from the broadcast signal to be transmitted, and if the NIT information is retrieved from the received broadcast signal, the controller 206 configures a channel list using the retrieved NIT information.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the display apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention as described above will be described in more detail.

The broadcast signal receiver 200 receives a broadcast signal of a specific channel according to a user request among broadcast signals transmitted from the outside.

That is, the broadcast signal receiver 200 receives a broadcast signal transmitted from the outside, and tunes a tuner for tuning a broadcast signal having a frequency band corresponding thereto according to a tuning control signal of the controller 206 to be described later. The demodulator outputs a broadcast signal of a specific channel in the form of a transport stream through a VSB (Vestigial Sideband) demodulation process and error correction process, and separates the output transport stream into video data, audio data, and various additional data bits. It may include a demultiplexer for outputting in the form of a stream.

The video data separated by the demultiplexer is processed by the image signal processor 201 and displayed on the display unit 202.

In this case, the image signal processing unit 201 includes an MPEG-2 decoder and a scaler for converting video data so as to conform to a vertical frequency, resolution, aspect ratio, and the like that match the output standard of the display unit 202.

The display unit 202 may be applied to various types of display modules, such as digital light processing (DLP), liquid crystal display (LCD), plasma display panel (PDP), and the like.

The audio data is processed by a separate voice signal processor (not shown) and output to a speaker (not shown). The audio processor may include an AC-3 decoder.

In this case, the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200 may be a broadcast signal of a specific channel received for viewing an image, and the broadcast signal or NIT (Network Information Table) for all channels sequentially received for reconstructing the channel list. ) May be a broadcast signal sequentially received for information retrieval.

Information on a specific channel in which the NIT information exists is stored in the memory unit 203 to be described later. Here, the information about the channel includes frequency information, modulation degree information, symbol information, and network ID information. The information may be stored in the memory unit 203 by a method of inputting respective information on a specific menu screen in a situation where a user recognizes information corresponding to a channel in which NIT information exists. Information about a channel on which the NIT has been searched may be stored in the channel search mode or the second channel search mode.

In addition, the memory unit 203 may be embodied by an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM).

The user input unit 204 is a means for receiving a request command from the user, and the first channel search mode execution request, the second channel search mode execution request, the channel up / down request, and the volume level up / down request input from the user. And the like to be transmitted to the control unit 206.

The menu screen generation unit 205 generates a menu screen for selecting any one of the first channel search mode and the second channel search mode according to a user request input through the user input unit 204. .

The controller 206 controls the channel search operation according to the channel search mode selected on the menu screen.

Operation of the control unit 206 will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

3 is a diagram illustrating a menu screen for channel search setting formed according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the menu screen 300 for channel search setting includes a first channel search mode (hereinafter referred to as a first channel search mode) 302 and a second channel search mode (Full). Searsh; hereafter referred to as a second channel search mode).

The second channel search mode setting item 301 sequentially searches for a broadcast signal according to a frequency band to determine whether it is valid, and accordingly configures a channel list based on information of a channel determined to be a valid broadcast signal. The first channel search mode setting item is an item for configuring a channel list based on the NIT information.

Accordingly, the user can set the channel search mode for the channel list configuration by selecting any one specific setting item on the menu screen 300 for the channel search setting.

In addition, when a specific channel search mode is set on the menu screen, the controller 206 controls the operation of the broadcast signal receiver 200 according to the set channel search mode.

4 is a diagram illustrating a second channel search mode screen formed by an embodiment of the present invention.

That is, when the second channel search mode is set on the menu screen, as shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 206 uses the broadcast signal receiving unit 200 to adjust from the lowest frequency to the highest frequency according to the frequency band. Broadcast signals are sequentially received.

At this time, if the cable connection is abnormal at the cable input of the corresponding display device, or if a valid channel search is not performed after the second channel search mode is executed, the user may inform the user of the error information through a message box. Allows you to check the connection status.

In other words, the controller 206 determines whether a valid broadcast signal exists from a broadcast signal corresponding to all channels sequentially received through the broadcast signal receiver 200, and determines that the valid broadcast signal exists. Register the channel information in the channel list.

In this case, after determining whether the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200 is valid, the controller 206 checks whether NIT information exists in the corresponding broadcast signal. The controller 206 stores channel information provided with a broadcast signal including NIT information in the memory unit 203.

That is, when the execution of the first channel discovery mode is requested later, the controller 206 checks whether the NIT information exists when the second channel discovery mode is executed to search for the NIT information within a short time, and accordingly, the NIT. Frequency information on a channel in which the information exists is stored in the memory unit 203. Accordingly, if the controller 206 is requested to execute the first channel search mode later, the controller 206 first searches for the NIT information by referring to the stored frequency information.

In addition, when the first channel search mode setting item is selected on the menu screen, the controller 206 searches for a channel in which NIT information exists for a channel list configuration.

That is, the controller 206 sequentially receives the broadcast signal from the lowest frequency to the highest frequency for each frequency band through the broadcast signal receiver 200 and checks whether NIT information exists in the received broadcast signal. Done. In this case, the controller 206 checks whether the frequency information pre-stored in the memory unit 203 exists, and if the pre-stored frequency information exists, the broadcast signal of the channel corresponding to the stored frequency information is the broadcast signal. It is to be preferentially received through the receiver 200.

At this time, the controller 206 stops the operation of the broadcast signal receiver 200 when any one specific NIT information is found in the broadcast signal of the specific channel received through the broadcast signal receiver 200. In other words, when one specific NIT information is found, the controller 206 stops the search operation of the NIT information and constructs a channel list using the retrieved NIT information.

In addition, the controller 206 determines whether the broadcast signal received for the NIT information search is valid in preparation for the case where the NIT information is not searched even after performing the NIT information search operation for all channels. As a result, the channel information determined as a valid broadcast signal is registered in the channel list.

In other words, the controller 206 determines whether NIT information is included in the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200.

If the received broadcast signal includes NIT information, the controller 206 stops the search operation and constructs a channel list using the NIT information included in the broadcast signal. At this time, the controller 206 initializes the pre-stored channel list and reconstructs the channel list using the retrieved NIT information.

In addition, when the received broadcast signal does not include NIT information, the controller 206 determines whether the broadcast signal is valid, and if it is determined that the broadcast signal is valid, the controller 206 provides information on the channel list. Register at

On the other hand, the method for providing the NIT information is different for each country, a certain country provides a plurality of different NIT information through a plurality of channels.

Therefore, the controller 206 controls the operation of the broadcast signal receiver 200 with reference to a plurality of frequency information previously stored in the memory unit 203.

That is, the controller 206 sequentially sets a plurality of frequency information previously stored in the memory unit 203, and the broadcast signal receiver 200 receives a broadcast signal corresponding to the sequentially set frequency information. .

In addition, the controller 206 retrieves NIT information from the received broadcast signal, and does not stop the operation of the broadcast signal receiver 200 even when one specific NIT information is retrieved, and stores all the stored frequency information. To receive a broadcast signal corresponding to.

Accordingly, when there is a plurality of NIT information retrieved by referring to the stored frequency information, the controller 206 integrates the plurality of retrieved NIT information into one and constructs a channel list using the integrated NIT information. . That is, the controller 206 constructs a channel list by combining the retrieved plurality of NIT information.

That is, the present invention sequentially searches the entire channel until any one specific NIT information is searched, and stops the search operation when the one specific NIT information is searched, and uses the searched NIT information to list the channels. By configuring a, it is possible to construct a channel list in a short time even if the user does not recognize the channel information provided with the NIT information.

In addition, by using a plurality of pre-stored frequency information, the plurality of NIT information can be easily searched, thereby reducing the channel search time and constructing a complete channel list using the plurality of NIT information.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a step-by-step method of executing a second channel discovery mode according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, when an external request for execution of the second channel search mode is first requested, the controller 206 sets a frequency for executing the second channel search mode (steps 500 to 501). That is, the controller 206 sets the lowest frequency as the discovery frequency when the execution of the second channel discovery mode is requested. In addition, if a previously searched frequency exists, the search frequency is set by summing a preset frequency band to the searched frequency.

Accordingly, the broadcast signal receiver 200 receives a broadcast signal corresponding to the frequency set through the controller 206 (step 502).

The controller 206 analyzes the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200 and determines whether the received broadcast signal is a valid broadcast signal (S503). That is, the controller 206 determines whether the received broadcast signal is a valid broadcast signal.

If it is determined that the received broadcast signal is valid, the controller 206 registers information of the channel determined to be provided with the valid broadcast signal in a channel list (step 504).

In addition, the controller 206 determines that the received broadcast signal is invalid or registers the channel information in a channel list, and then checks whether the received broadcast signal includes NIT information (step 505). ).

If it is determined that the received broadcast signal includes NIT information, the controller 206 stores frequency information corresponding to the corresponding channel in the memory unit 203 (step 506). That is, when the second channel search mode is executed, the controller 206 further determines whether the broadcast signal includes NIT information after determining the validity of the broadcast signal provided from the corresponding channel. When the channel search mode is executed, the NIT information can be retrieved in a short time.

Next, the controller 206 checks whether the set frequency is the highest frequency (step 507). That is, the controller 206 checks whether all of the broadcast signals corresponding to all channels have been searched.

If all the broadcast signals corresponding to the entire channel have been searched, the controller 206 ends. Otherwise, the controller 206 returns to step 501 to set the frequency of the next channel to be searched.

6 is a flowchart for explaining a method of executing a first channel search mode according to a first embodiment of the present invention step by step.

As shown in FIG. 6, when a first channel search mode execution is requested from the outside, the controller 206 sets a frequency for executing the first channel search mode (steps 600 to 601). That is, when the execution of the first channel search mode is requested, the controller 206 checks whether the pre-stored frequency information exists and, if the pre-stored frequency information exists, first sets the stored frequency information as the search frequency. do. In addition, if all of the stored frequency information is set as a search frequency or stored frequency information does not exist, the lowest frequency is set as a search frequency, and then a preset frequency band is added to the set frequency to set a search frequency to be performed next. do.

Accordingly, the broadcast signal receiver 200 receives a broadcast signal corresponding to the frequency set through the controller 206 (step 602).

In addition, the controller 206 checks whether the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200 includes NIT information (step 603).

If the received broadcast signal does not include NIT information, the controller 206 determines whether the received broadcast signal is valid (step 604).

If it is determined that the received broadcast signal is valid, the controller 206 registers channel information on which the broadcast signal is received in the channel list (step 605). That is, the controller 206 determines whether the received broadcast signal is valid in preparation for a situation in which NIT information is not retrieved, and constructs a channel list accordingly.

Subsequently, the controller 206 checks whether the received broadcast signal is a broadcast signal corresponding to the highest frequency (step 606). That is, the controller 206 checks whether the received broadcast signal is a broadcast signal corresponding to the last channel.

If the received broadcast signal is a broadcast signal corresponding to the highest frequency, the controller 206 terminates execution of the first channel search mode, or returns to step 601 to correspond to the next search frequency. Control so that the broadcast signal of the channel to be received.

Meanwhile, if NIT information is included in the received broadcast signal, the controller 206 extracts NIT information from the received broadcast signal and stops the searching operation in operation (step 607). That is, the controller 206 stops the operation of the broadcast signal receiving unit 200 at the time when any specific NIT information is found. In other words, when the NIT information is searched through a specific channel in a situation where the search for all channels is not performed, the controller 206 prevents the search operation from being performed on a subsequent channel of the channel where the NIT information is found.

In addition, the controller 206 stores the frequency information of the channel from which the NIT information is found in the memory unit 203 (step 608). Accordingly, the controller 203 performs the NIT information search operation by first referring to the stored frequency information and the stored frequency information when the second channel search mode is executed again when the first channel search mode is executed again.

In operation 609, the controller 206 initializes a previously stored channel list.

Subsequently, the controller 206 reconstructs the initialized channel list using the retrieved NIT information (step 610).

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a method of executing a first channel search mode of a display apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention step by step.

Referring to FIG. 7, when a first channel search mode execution is requested from the outside, the controller 206 sets a frequency for executing the first channel search mode (steps 700 to 701). That is, when the execution of the first channel search mode is requested, the controller 206 checks a plurality of pre-stored frequency information and sets a search frequency based on the identified plurality of frequency information.

Subsequently, the control unit 206 sequentially applies the set plurality of search frequencies, and the broadcast signal receiving unit 200 receives a broadcast signal of a channel corresponding to the search frequency applied through the control unit (step 702).

The control unit 206 checks the existence of NIT information from the broadcast signals sequentially received through the broadcast signal receiving unit 200, and extracts the corresponding NIT information if the NIT information exists (step 703). That is, the received broadcast signal may or may not include NIT information. Accordingly, the controller 206 checks whether the NIT information exists in the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiver 200 and Perform NIT information extraction.

Subsequently, the controller 206 merges the extracted NIT information into one (step 704). That is, when there are a plurality of NIT information retrieved from the sequentially received broadcast signals, the controller 206 merges the plurality of retrieved NIT information into one. In addition, the control unit 206 does not perform the consolidation process if only one specific NIT information is retrieved.

The controller 206 constructs a channel list using the integrated NIT information, or constructs a channel list using the retrieved specific NIT information (step 705).

That is, in the method of executing the first channel search mode of the display apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of frequency information provided with NIT information should be stored in the memory unit 203 first. The controller 206 sequentially applies the stored plurality of frequencies to retrieve a plurality of NIT information.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the user can eliminate the inconvenience of having to set up by recognizing the frequency information in which the Network Information Table (NIT) information is present, and the cable broadcaster can provide the NIT information at any time. This gives you the flexibility to change the frequency that is being used.

In addition, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of frequencies in which NIT information exists may be flexibly stored to reduce a channel search time, and a complete channel list may be constructed using the plurality of NIT information.

The above description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains may make various modifications and variations without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present invention but to describe the present invention, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The protection scope of the present invention should be interpreted by the following claims, and all technical ideas within the scope equivalent thereto should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

1 is a view showing a channel setting method of a display apparatus according to the prior art.

2 is a view showing the configuration of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram illustrating a menu screen for channel search setting formed by an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a diagram illustrating a second channel search mode screen formed according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a step-by-step method of executing a second channel search mode according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a flowchart for explaining a method of executing a first channel search mode according to a first embodiment of the present invention step by step;

7 is a flowchart illustrating a step-by-step method of executing a first channel search mode according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (13)

Requesting execution of a first channel search mode; Retrieving network information table (NIT) information by using a frequency domain corresponding to all channels as a range according to the execution request of the first channel search mode; And, Comprising a step of constructing a channel list by using the retrieved NIT information, The searching is performed by setting a channel corresponding to previously stored frequency information as a priority. delete The method of claim 1, And the pre-stored frequency information is frequency information stored when the second channel search mode is executed. The method of claim 1, Determining whether a broadcast signal received for the NIT information retrieval is valid; And, And if it is determined that the received broadcast signal is valid, registering channel information provided with the broadcast signal in the channel list. The method of claim 4, wherein And if the NIT information is retrieved from a specific channel, initializing the pre-stored channel list. The method of claim 1, If the NIT information is found, storing frequency information corresponding to the channel from which the NIT information is found; The channel to be preferentially performed in the searching step is a channel in which the stored NIT information is searched. The method of claim 1, And stopping searching for the NIT information when the NIT information is found. The method of claim 1, Searching for the NIT information Searching for a plurality of NIT information with reference to a plurality of pre-stored frequency information; Comprising a channel list by using the retrieved NIT information And combining the retrieved plurality of NIT information into one and constructing a channel list using the combined NIT information. A user input unit for receiving a request command from a user; A broadcast signal receiver sequentially receiving broadcast signals corresponding to all channels transmitted from the outside when a first channel search mode execution is requested from the user input unit; And, A control unit for retrieving NIT information from the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiving unit and constructing a channel list using the retrieved NIT information; And the control unit searches for the NIT information by giving priority to a channel corresponding to pre-stored frequency information through the broadcast signal receiving unit. The method of claim 9, And a memory unit configured to store frequency information of a channel from which NIT information is found when the second channel search mode is executed. And the controller controls the broadcast signal of the channel corresponding to the stored frequency information to be preferentially received through the broadcast signal receiver. The method of claim 9, And if the control unit determines that the broadcast signal received through the broadcast signal receiving unit is valid, registers information of a channel on which the valid broadcast signal is received in the channel list. The method of claim 10, And when the NIT information is found while the search operation is performed, the controller stores frequency information corresponding to the channel where the NIT information is found in the memory unit. The method of claim 9, And the controller configures the channel list by combining the plurality of NIT information when the searched NIT information is plural.

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