KR20020068149A - A system for controlling play information of multimedia contents and a method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A multimedia contents screening information control system and a method for the same are provided to support searching the contents, designating the screening time, proving the search result as the user desires. CONSTITUTION: The system(100) contains the screening information formation table(102), which is made out as a default web page to be viewed on web-browser. The table can be an OSD(On Screen Display) screen. The table contains screening date, URL and other information. The system also contains screening information operating module(104), a robot operating module(110), multimedia contents information DB(108), and DB operating module(106). The screening information operating module searches the users' desirable contents and marks them to distinguish whether the contents is able to be screened or not. The robot operating module collects multimedia contents and provides the list of them to the users. The system can store some contents in DB to screen some contents at high-speed. When a user inputs the search parameters, the robot agent searches the appropriate contents and reflects the search result in the contents information DB. As the same procedure, the web page table is updated. The system can be adapted in the digital broadcasting systems.

Description

A system for controlling play information of multimedia contents and a method

The present invention relates to a screening information control system and method for controlling a screening schedule of multimedia content, and in particular, to control the desired content of a plurality of multimedia content to be screened according to its own screening schedule (so-called screening schedule) A system and method for controlling screening information of multimedia content.

In recent years, broadcast systems have digitized screened contents despite the variety of media, thereby adopting a method of adding various functions through data communication at the same time. The screening of digital content is being developed along with digital broadcasting system for digital television, and even in case of satellite broadcasting using satellite or cable broadcasting using cable network, various additional functions can be obtained by digitizing contents away from the conventional analog broadcasting system. Attempting to add As described above, since the digitized content has a feature that is not dependent on its transmission medium (media), it is referred to as multimedia contents (hereinafter, simply referred to as "content").

In addition, the development of so-called 'Internet' computer communication network has led to the emergence of a transmission protocol called the World Wide Web (hereinafter, simply referred to as "Web"). According to this method, specific information is produced in the form of Hypertext markup language (HTML), and then the HTMLized information is transferred to another computer using Hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). The computer receiving the information and receiving the information decodes the HTMLized information using a so-called web browser and displays it in the form of a so-called web page. Since the global communication network in which various communication protocols including the World Wide Web method are implemented is commonly referred to as the Internet among the general public, the same name is used here as a generic term.

In the past, it was common to use a computer system such as a personal computer (PC), a workstation, or the like to access various information through the Internet. In recent years, however, as multimedia contents such as music and moving images can be transmitted from the Internet, apparatuses for accessing the Internet using televisions widely used in homes have been provided.

Representative of them is what is called "Internet set-top box", which is software and hardware for accessing the Internet, software and hardware for displaying various information received from the Internet, and a display device of the television (e.g., CRT). Internet access device equipped with software and hardware for driving. The Internet set-top box as described above is named in the sense that it is placed on the housing of the television to use the television for a special purpose. In addition, a television produced by integrating hardware and software having the same function as the Internet set-top box from the beginning has already been disclosed, which is referred to as Internet television.

The TV or Internet TV to which the above-described Internet set-top box is connected is an apparatus embodying the same technical idea in that it accesses the Internet to "navigate" the Internet and accesses the desired information. This is called.

According to the Internet TV as described above, a multimedia content provided on the Internet can be watched through a viewer's TV, and a so-called Internet broadcasting station that provides content using the Internet as a medium has appeared. Screening of multimedia content is called Internet broadcasting. The above-mentioned Internet broadcasting is different from the digital broadcasting using the above-mentioned airwaves, satellites or cable networks, and there is a difference in the communication media used, and it provides digitized contents for viewing by actual users (viewers). There is no balance.

Therefore, hereinafter, all of the above-described methods for transmitting digitized content to viewers for viewing despite the differences in communication media are collectively referred to as "digital broadcasting". The biggest feature of the digital broadcasting is that the supplied content has been digitized, the exchange of information is bidirectional, etc. Therefore, in theory, individual viewers can request their desired content at a desired time. To be able to watch (a system with such a function is called a 'on-demand video system').

Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a method of screening multimedia content according to a conventional technology. As shown, according to the related art, when a user who accesses a specific web page is confirmed to be a member subscriber and logs in, the user can search for a video list (S106), and the user can select one of the video lists. Can be selected (S107). If the user selects the desired video (S107) and then presses the "Watch Video" button, the video is played in real time (S111). However, if the user does not want to watch the video right now but wants to watch the selected video later, the user selects the "Time Schedule" button. Press to reserve the video viewing time (S108) and later access the server at the reserved time (S110) to receive and watch the reservation video in real time. If it is desired to cancel the reservation of the video viewing time, the reservation may be canceled by pressing the "cancel reservation" button (S109).

However, in order for the on-demand video system to operate conveniently, it is important to conveniently find a desired content in a database that stores a huge amount of information such as the Internet or a broadcaster's content storage device.

However, search sites that currently help you search for information scattered on the Internet provide only a list of sites that provide content that includes the keywords you enter into a search engine, and links to access those sites. There was a problem that it was difficult to know whether the search result was actually a site that contained the content they were looking for.

In addition, it is not only a long time but also a very cumbersome task to determine whether the desired information has been searched by reading a search result in which only a large number of characters are displayed, and a search result performed by a search engine of a search site of the Internet is one-time. In order to retrieve information of the same content later, it was inconvenient to go through the same procedure again.

Further, according to the related art shown in FIG. 1, even when a user wants to reserve a desired running time, there is a problem in that the reservation cannot be made until the search for the desired content is successfully completed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to easily search for a specific multimedia content desired by a user of an on-demand video system and to schedule a screening of multimedia content instructed to search. To provide a screening information control system and method for multimedia content to be specified as desired.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a system and method for controlling screening information of multimedia content in which a user may not be immersed in the entire process of searching by reporting a search result regarding a multimedia content desired by the user in a manner desired by the user.

1 is a flowchart showing a method of screening multimedia content according to a conventional technology.

2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a screening information control system of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of an operation of the screening information control system of FIG.

Figure 4 conceptually illustrates one embodiment of a screening information schedule prepared by the screening information control system of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of the screening information organization table of FIG. 3. FIG.

6 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of a screening information control system of the present invention.

7 is a flow chart showing another embodiment of the operation of the screening information control system of FIG.

* Explanation of symbols in the main parts of the drawings

100: screening information control system 102: screening information schedule

104: screening information operation module 106: database operation module

108: database 110: robot operation module

112: search result reporting module 120: web browser

130: Internet 140: multimedia content

150: search robot

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention, a screening information control system of the multimedia content for setting the screening schedule of the multimedia content, the screening information schedule including at least one screening information of the multimedia content; A screening information operation module that can add, change or remove the configuration and contents of the screening information schedule; A robot operation module which interacts with the screening information operation module and controls the search robot periodically or from time to time in response to a preset search condition to collect at least information on access to the multimedia content as information about the multimedia content; ; A multimedia content information database which holds at least a user-specified information about the running time and information about the access as information about the multimedia content; And a database operation module configured to receive information about the multimedia content from the robot operation module and store the information on the multimedia content in the multimedia content information database, or update the information stored therein.

According to another aspect of the present invention, in the method of controlling the screening information of the multimedia content for setting the screening schedule of the multimedia content, the user to set the screening information including the screening time for at least one or more multimedia content; step; A second step of instructing a search robot to search for information on the multimedia content in which the screening information is set; A third step of determining whether the search robot has successfully searched for information on the multimedia content in which the screening information is set; And a fourth step of updating the database and the screening information to reflect the result of the search when the search is successfully completed as a result of the determination.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of a screening information control system and method for multimedia content according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a conceptual block diagram of a screening information control system 100 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a "screening information control system") of multimedia content according to the present invention. The screening information control system 100 of the present invention can be applied to any video system for on-demand broadcasting having the above characteristics, and it will be a simple design option that the technical idea is implemented in hardware of which configuration. It is only. Therefore, the following description will be given by taking a case where a user searches for multimedia content desired by the user on the Internet, and views it using an Internet TV with or without an Internet set-top box.

As shown, the screening information control system 100 of the present invention includes a screening information organization table 102 including screening information of a plurality of multimedia content. The screening information schedule is preferably created in the form of a web page set to be displayed by a browser 120 provided in an Internet television (not shown). When the screening information schedule 102 is created in the form of a web page, the web page is called a screening information web page. Since the screening information organization table 102 and the screening information web page are related to the content and format, they can be regarded as substantially the same as each other. Of course, the screening information table 102 is not necessarily implemented in the form of a web page. As will be described later, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the screening information table 102 may be created as an OSD screen that can be displayed on the screen by the TV's On Screen Display (OSD) function. have. Hereinafter, the term 'screening information organization table' and the term 'screening information web page' will be used interchangeably.

The " screening information " refers to the minimum information necessary for showing the multimedia content among the information about the multimedia content. Therefore, the type and amount of the screening information may vary depending on the type and format of the multimedia content. For example, the screening information may include access information such as a file format of the multimedia content or a URL thereof. However, incidental information that is not required for the screening of the multimedia contents such as copyright holder or brief description of contents is not included in the screening information. Such additional information may be included in the screening information webpage 102 together with the screening information.

The screening information web page 102 is preferably accessed in the same manner as accessing a web page on a typical Internet, and in some embodiments is initially displayed as power is applied to the Internet television to initiate its operation. It can also be set to a so-called default page.

As described below, the screening information web page 102 is a list of one or more multimedia contents desired by the user, a screening time (including a screening date) set by the user for each content, and a unique access for accessing each content. Various information about the multimedia content such as a Resource Locator (URL) is included.

Although the screening information web page 102 is preferably written in a general HTML language, the programming language used is not particularly limited.

The screening information organization table displayed on the screening information web page 102 will be described later with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

In addition, the screening information control system 100 of the present invention further includes a screening information operation module 104 that can add, change or remove the configuration and content of the screening information webpage 102. The screening information operation module 104 searches for the multimedia content desired by the user and fails to search the content or finds the content but cannot display it at the desired screening time (e.g., due to congestion of the request). Incapable of accessing or reproducing due to a failure of multimedia content), a red cover may be added to a corresponding portion of the screening information schedule 400 displayed on the screening information webpage 102, for example. The screening information webpage 102 is operated.

The screening information control system 100 of the present invention interacts with the screening information operating module 104 and is configured to search for at least information on access to the multimedia content as information about the multimedia content. The robot operation module 110 further controls the search robot 150 periodically or in response to the response.

The robot operation module 106 instructs the search robot 150 when and in what range the search is to be performed according to a search condition set by the user by using the search parameter input by the user. It also monitors whether the set search parameters or search conditions have changed.

In general, the search robot 150, unlike general search engines operated by search sites on the Internet, collects content containing specific information desired by a user and provides the result as a processed search result to the user. Is a new kind of search engine. The search robot 150 may also be referred to as a search agent or a robot agent, and the technical concept thereof is already well known in the technical field of the present invention, and thus the details thereof will be omitted.

The screening information control system 100 may be provided with the above-described search robot 150 by itself, and may include the search robot 150 provided in an external search robot 150 or an on-demand video system (not shown). It may be implemented in a manner used periodically or from time to time.

Furthermore, the screening information control system 100 of the present invention includes multimedia information which holds at least the information on the running time set by the user and information on access to the content as the screening information, that is, the information on the multimedia content. An information database 108 and a database operation module 106 which receives information about the multimedia content from the robot operation module 110 and stores it in the multimedia content information database 108 or updates the information stored therein. It includes more.

In particular, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the screening information control system 100 is a content database (not shown) for storing some multimedia content itself among the multimedia content in which the screening information is stored in the multimedia content information database 108. ) May be further included. This is intended for faster playback of multimedia content preferred by the user or especially large.

Next, referring to Fig. 3, the operation of the screening information control system 100 of the present invention will be described. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of an operation of the screening information control system of FIG. 2. When the operation is started, the robot operation module 110 may search a parameter, a search condition, and a search for a desired multimedia content. The user selects a desired running time or the like (step S302). The search parameter may be related to a category on the contents of a movie, a drama, a music video, a song, or the like, or may be related to a category on a multimedia content such as .mpg or .ra. Further, the search parameter includes all information expected to be input by the user for accurate search such as title, producer, actor, director, etc. of the multimedia content.

In addition, the search condition may be set to perform a search for 10 hours from the present using, for example, an input search parameter or to perform a search over 100 times at 10 minute intervals.

In addition, setting the running time designates when a specific multimedia content is desired to be screened. In some embodiments, the screening time may be specified only for content successfully searched after the search is completed. In addition, the same running time for a plurality of multimedia contents may be designated to correct overlapping running times when a plurality of contents are successfully searched as a result of the search.

Next, the robot operation module 110 instructs the search robot 150 to perform a search under the search parameters and the search conditions (step S304), and displays the search result performed by the search robot 150. Review (step S306).

Thus, as a result of the search, it is determined whether the multimedia content desired by the user has been found successfully (step S308). If it is determined that the search is successful as a result of the determination in step S308, the search result is transmitted to the database operation module 106, and the database operation module 106 reflects the search result. The information database 108 is updated (step S310). In addition, the successful search result is also transmitted to the screening information operation module 104, so that the screening information webpage 102 is updated to reflect the search result (step S310). Therefore, when a user accesses the screening information webpage 102 after a predetermined time (for example, after the search time set by the user has elapsed), the user can confirm that the desired multimedia content is searched and displayed.

However, if, as a result of the determination in step S308, the user cannot find the desired multimedia content or cannot be displayed even if found (for example, if the file is damaged), the robot operation module 110 determines that the user It is determined whether the search time or number of times of search has elapsed (step S316). Thus, if it has not elapsed yet, the process returns to step S306 again to perform a search, and then step S308 is repeated. However, if the search fails even after all of the search time or number of searches set by the user have passed, control is returned to the initial stage.

By the above operation, the user can not only control the multimedia content that he / she wants to be shown at a desired time, but also do not have to wait until the search is successfully completed in order to set the show time.

Next, referring to FIG. 4, FIG. 4 conceptually illustrates one embodiment of the screening information organization table 400 produced by the screening information control system of the present invention. As shown, the screening information schedule 400 is an example of a weekly schedule, which displays what content is screened at a specific time of day. The screening information listing table 400 may be displayed as a blank when a specific user first accesses the screen. In this case, as described above, the user merely inputs search parameters to search for multimedia content that he / she wants to watch, and presents a list of contents that can be displayed as a result of the search based on the search parameters, and sets the running time. Let's do it. When the screening time of each content is set by the user, the screening information schedule 400 as shown in FIG. 4 may be created. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3, when the screening time is input together with the input of the search parameter, the screening information schedule 400 may be created as the successfully searched content is confirmed.

Once the screening information schedule 400 is created, the created screening information schedule 400 may be displayed, and if it is desired to modify the screening information, the search parameter may be input again or the screening time may be newly set.

The screening information schedule 400 is unique to each user. For example, the screening information schedule 400 may be easily implemented by performing a user identification operation when accessing the screening information webpage 102. . When the user's screening information schedule 400 is satisfactory, the user clicks the "Commission Approval" button at the bottom to complete the setup.

Referring to FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a part of the screening information schedule 400, by clicking each content area included in the screening information schedule 400 shown in FIG. 4. It is preferable to configure the screening information webpage 102 such that the description unit 500 of the individual content as shown in FIG. 5 is displayed.

As illustrated, the description unit 500 of the individual content includes a brief description 502 of the corresponding multimedia content, an image 504 indicating the content of the content, and a running time 506 set by the user. desirable. Of course, the configuration and content of the individual content description unit 500 is merely a design option, and is not essential to the technical spirit of the present invention.

In addition, each of the components 502, 504, or 506 included in the description unit 500 may be changed to other contents by clicking or selecting by the user, or may be changed to be displayed at different screening times.

Next, another embodiment of the screening information control system and method of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

First, referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing another embodiment of the screening information control system of the present invention. According to this embodiment, the screening information control system 100 of the present invention is a search for reporting to the user by a reporting method specified by the user when the search result from the robot operation module 110 is found to be successful or failed The result reporting module 112 further includes. For example, when it is determined by the robot operation module 110 that the search is successfully performed before reaching the search time (or the number of searches) set by the user, the search result report module 112 is Send a report describing the results of a successful search to the user. Or, if it is determined that the search fails after the set search time (or the number of search times) has elapsed, the user is notified that the desired multimedia content cannot be searched.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, since the search results are reported according to a method specified in advance by the user, the user can display the content that can be shown at the desired display time and the content that is not available without accessing the screening information webpage 102. It can be seen, and can access the screening information webpage 102 to perform the desired task only if desired.

The reporting method for reporting the search result report module 112 is preferably set by the user in advance. For example, as described above, a user may store and receive a search result by e-mail by storing his or her e-mail account, and store the search result in a text message or a voice message by storing a phone number of the mobile phone. You may be reported. In addition, in the case of Internet television, after the search is completed, it is also possible to report by displaying the search results on the screen using the On Screen Display function. Furthermore, an additional lamp may be provided to notify only that the search is visually completed or to be notified by voice through the speaker.

The search result report module 112 may be easily implemented by those skilled in the art by utilizing various messaging hardware and software known in the art in order to implement a function according to the method set as described above. Determining whether to report is only a design option, so the details are omitted.

7 is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of the operation of the screening information control system of FIG. 6, in which the same steps as those shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals. As shown, according to the present embodiment, when a search parameter and a search condition are input after the operation is started, a report method for reporting a search result is also input (step S702).

Next, the steps S304 to S314 described above are performed with reference to FIG. 3. Next, in the same manner as described above, the user reports the search results according to the reporting method set in step S702 (step S704).

According to another embodiment of the present invention, when the user who has reported the search results accesses the screening information webpage 102 in which the search results are reflected, the screening information organization table 400 based on the search results is modified or It may further include the step of allowing approval without modification.

As described above, although the screening information control system and method thereof according to the present invention have been described with reference to Internet television, the above technical concept of the present invention can be applied to digital broadcasting systems of all types regardless of transmission media. For example, in a digital broadcasting system using airwaves or a cable network or a satellite communication network, a screening information screen (not shown) using an on-screen display function may be used instead of the screening information webpage 102. The database operation module 106 and the multimedia content information database 108 may utilize those already provided in the broadcasting system. In addition, the search robot operated by the robot operation module 110 may be a search robot included in an operation module for operating an internal database already provided in the broadcasting system.

Therefore, the technical idea of the present invention should not be construed as limited to the above detailed description, but should be construed in accordance with the following claims.

According to the screening information control system and method for multimedia content according to the present invention, a screening information web page (or screening information screen) including predetermined screening information is set by the user and information on the multimedia content of various categories and ranges. By including the screening time, the user can create and manage a screening information schedule (screening schedule) of the multimedia content desired by the user.

Further, according to the screening information control system and method for multimedia content according to the present invention, the user does not have to wait until the search for a specific multimedia content is completed, by setting only the search parameters, the search conditions and the running time. You can be provided with the desired screening information schedule.

Claims (13)

In the screening information control system of the multimedia content for setting the screening schedule of the multimedia content, A screening information schedule including screening information of at least one multimedia content; A screening information operation module that can add, change or remove the configuration and contents of the screening information schedule; A robot operation module which interacts with the screening information operation module and controls the search robot periodically or from time to time in response to a preset search condition to collect at least information on access to the multimedia content as information about the multimedia content; ; A multimedia content information database which holds at least a user-specified information about the running time and information about the access as information about the multimedia content; And And a database operation module for receiving information on the multimedia content from the robot operation module and storing the information on the multimedia content in the multimedia content information database or updating the information stored therein. The method of claim 1, The screening information schedule, A screening information control system for multimedia content, which is created in the form of a web page included in a specific site on the Internet and can be accessed by its own resource locator. The method of claim 1, The screening information schedule, Screening information of multimedia content including a list of one or more multimedia contents desired by the user, a running time set by the user for at least each of the contents as information about the multimedia contents, and a unique resource locator for accessing the respective contents. Control system. The method of claim 1, The robot operation module, A screening information control system for multimedia content instructing the search robot when and to what extent a search is to be performed according to a search condition set by a user using a search parameter input by a user. The method of claim 1, Screening information control system of the multimedia content itself equipped with the search robot. The method of claim 1, Screening information control system of the multimedia content further comprises a content database for storing at least one multimedia content itself of the multimedia content. The method according to claim 1 to 6, And a search result report module for reporting the result of the search to the user according to a user-specified report method when the search result from the robot operation module is found to be successful or failed. In the method of controlling the screening information of the multimedia content for setting the screening schedule of the multimedia content, A first step of setting, by the user, the presentation information including the presentation time about the at least one multimedia content; A second step of instructing a search robot to search for information on the multimedia content in which the screening information is set; A third step of determining whether the search robot has successfully searched for information on the multimedia content in which the screening information is set; And And a fourth step of updating the database and the screening information to reflect the result of the search if the search is successfully completed as a result of the determination. The method of claim 8, And wherein the first step is performed after the third step of performing a search for the multimedia content is performed. The method of claim 8, And a fifth step of allowing a user to input a search parameter and a search condition for searching for desired multimedia content. The method of claim 8, As a result of the determination in the third step, if it is determined that the search has not been successfully completed, it is determined whether the preset search time or the number of searches has elapsed. Screening information control method of the multimedia content further comprising a sixth step of performing the operation. The method of claim 8, A seventh step of inputting a report method for causing a user to report a search result by the search robot; And And after the search by the search robot is completed, an eighth step of reporting the search result to the user according to the reporting method set in the seventh step. The method of claim 8, And a ninth step of allowing the user who has received the search result according to the eighth step to modify or approve the screening information reflecting the search result without modification.