KR20110051471A - Broadcast receiver and method of sharing epg through homenetwork - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A broadcast receiver and a method for sharing an EPG through a home network are provided to edit broadcasting information by remotely accessing the EPG and channel information. CONSTITUTION: A method for sharing an EPG through a home network comprises the steps of: creating received channel and EPG information of file format in channel and EPG metadata format(S403); storing the channel and EPG metadata in a sharing folder by using a sharing function of a network protocol(S404); and processing the channel and EPG information by accessing the stored channel and EPG metadata stored in the sharing folder in a remote device connected through an Internet protocol(S406).

Description

How to share electronic program guide through broadcast receiver and home network {Broadcast receiver and method of sharing EPG through homenetwork}

The present invention relates to a method of sharing an electronic program guide through a broadcast receiver and a home network, and more particularly, to a method for setting a preferred channel and recording a reservation by accessing a channel and EPG information of a broadcast receiver from the outside.

In general, a home network includes a private network based on an Internet Protocol (IP), and includes various AV devices such as computing devices such as personal computers (PCs) used in homes, kitchens, home appliances, Various devices such as wireless devices can be connected and controlled in one network.

Such a home network is proposed to build middleware according to a common virtual computing environment for various devices existing in a home and to provide an application thereon, so that the middleware can communicate with each other. Home AV Interoperability (HAVI), Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), Jini, and the like are known.

In addition, a broadcast receiver connected to the home network mainly provides a one-way service for retrieving and reproducing data of an external device, and there is almost no form of accessing data of a broadcast receiver from an external device.

The present invention provides a broadcast receiver for editing broadcast information by remotely accessing EPG and channel information of a broadcast receiver on a home network and an electronic program guide sharing method through a home network.

Technical problems to be achieved by the present invention are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned above will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. Could be.

In order to achieve the above object, a broadcast receiver sharing an electronic program guide through a home network of the present invention includes a receiver for receiving channel and EPG information together with a broadcast signal; A metadata module for generating the received channel and EPG information as file and channel EPG metadata; A network interface unit connecting to a network using an internet protocol (IP) and connecting to a remote device existing on the network; A storage unit for storing the generated channel and EPG metadata in a shared folder using a sharing function of a network protocol; And a control unit for granting access to the channel and EPG metadata stored in the shared folder from a remote device connected through the Internet Protocol (IP) and detecting the processed channel and EPG information in the remote device.

The metadata module generates the channel and EPG information as EPG data in a file format.

The channel and EPG information may be generated in an XML file format.

The controller may be configured to automatically share the generated channel and EPG metadata using a sharing function of the Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocol.

The controller retrieves a root directory IP address and a port number of a device existing on the network through CIFS (Common Internet File System), which is the Internet protocol (IP).

A CIFS shared file is parsed by running a channel and an EPG viewer program on a remote device connected through the Internet Protocol (IP).

The remote device parses the CIFS shared file to process channel and EPG information.

The processing of the channel and EPG information may be any one of preference channel setting, reserved viewing and recording, channel information search, and user-specific channel setting.

The controller periodically detects whether the channel and the EPG file are changed in the remote device and reflects the setting in the broadcast receiver.

The receiver may be provided with a terrestrial wave, a cable, a satellite, and an internet network, which are received through an antenna, for each broadcast, or may be an integrated tuner.

The present invention also provides a method for sharing an electronic program guide through a home network of a broadcast receiver, the method comprising: generating received channel and EPG information as a file and channel EPG metadata; Storing the generated channel and EPG metadata in a shared folder using a sharing function of a network protocol; And processing the channel and EPG information by accessing the channel and EPG metadata stored in the shared folder from a remote device connected via the Internet Protocol (IP).

The EPG metadata generates the channel and EPG information as channel and EPG data in a file format.

The channel and EPG information may be generated in an XML file format.

The generated channel and EPG metadata are automatically set to share using a sharing function of the Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocol.

And searching for a root directory IP address and a port number of a device existing on the network through CIFS (Common Internet File System), which is the Internet Protocol (IP).

A CIFS shared file is parsed by running a channel and an EPG viewer program on a remote device connected through the network protocol.

The step of processing the channel and EPG information, characterized in that any one of the preferred channel setting, reservation viewing and recording, channel information search and user-specific settings.

The remote device periodically detects whether the uplink channel and the EPG file are changed and reflects the setting in the broadcast receiver.

The channel and EPG information may be received through at least one transmission path among terrestrial, cable, satellite, and internet networks.

The broadcast receiver of the present invention supports home networks as well as unidirectional playback of input AV signals, thereby enabling data sharing between devices in the home, and in particular, processing user broadcast setting information by remotely accessing EPG data, which is the main information of the broadcast receiver. In addition, it is effective to provide various data search and classification functions by providing EPG viewer program.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to clearly describe the present invention, and like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when a part is said to include a certain component, it means that it may further include other components, except to exclude other components unless specifically stated otherwise. In addition, terms such as '.. part', '.. module' described in the specification means a unit for processing at least one function or operation, which may be implemented by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software.

1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an electronic program guide sharing network according to the present invention.

The broadcast receiver 1100 that receives EPG and channel information on the home network discovers a device (PC, notebook, PDA, etc.) 1200 existing in the network by using the Common Inaternet File System (CIFS) protocol. The broadcast receiver 1100 receives a streaming service of various contents such as media data (pictures / videos / music) from the connected network device 1200. The home network according to the present invention provides a streaming service of media content and may use a protocol of CIFS protocol and HTTP service.

In response to a request of the network device 1200, the broadcast receiver 1100 shares the stored EPG and channel information and updates the stored EPG and channel information with the preferred channel setting and the recording reservation setting edited by the network device 1200.

The home network according to the present invention can automatically discover UPnP devices in the same IP network in the form of a UPnP network to obtain information on each device, and define a control environment for services provided by each device.

In the home network of the present invention, not only various media content materials but also broadcast program information stored in a broadcast receiver are shared so that a presentation of the broadcast program information stored in the broadcast receiver is performed in a device existing in the network.

2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a method for sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Computer device 1200 may include a control point or be built separately from the control point. In this case, the control point refers to a controller having a function of detecting and controlling other network devices. The control point finds the address of the broadcast receiver 1100 and accesses the broadcast receiver 1100 through the IP address to download and use a desired file.

In addition, the broadcast receiver 1100 and the computer device 1200 in the network can read information about the media files held by each other, and the name, format, file size, presentation time and URL of the media file. (Uniform Resource Location), file type, etc. can be checked.

In the UPnP network, the protocol stack performs communication between the broadcast receiver 1100 and the computer device 1200 by using Internet, IP, HTTP, eXtensibel Markup Language (XML), and Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) technologies. Will be defined.

First, the broadcast receiver 1100 providing a CIFS service periodically transmits an SSDP Advertisement message indicating a CIFS service to a computer device 1200 having a control point of a UPnP network therein through the Internet (S10). The computer device 1200 transmits an SSDP Search Request message to the broadcast receiver 1100 and receives a response message indicating a CIFS service as a response to the search request message.

In addition, the computer device 1200 may discover the broadcast receiver 1100 through an SSDP message, and the broadcast receiver 1100 based on information such as an IP address of the broadcast receiver 1100 through a description message provided by a CIFS service. ) Is registered (S11).

In this case, the computer device 1200 may automatically connect to an accessible directory provided by the broadcast receiver 1100, and the accessible directory may be accessed by all unspecified users who are connected to the corresponding broadcast receiver 1100. This corresponds to a directory authorized to enable this (S12).

In addition, when the login information is registered to the broadcast receiver 1100 at the control point of the computer device 1200, the accessible directory includes the login information of the control point of the computer device 1200 and the broadcast receiver 1100. If the login information is the same, it can be limited to a directory to which access rights are given, and by using a local function or the like according to the implementation method in the control point of the computer device 1200 without defining additional actions by the CIFS service. It is also possible to proceed.

Management of the broadcast receiver 1100 is largely divided into user management and file directory sharing setting management. CIFS actions for user management and directory sharing setting management are transmitted and received between the computer device 1200 and the broadcast receiver 1100. Actions for user management and actions for directory sharing configuration management are defined in Table 1 below.

Name Req. or Opt CreatUser R Changepassword R DeleteUser R CreatDir R EditDir R DeleteDir R ShowDirInfo R

Table 1 defines the actions of Add User (CreatUser), Change User Password (DeletePassword), and Delete User (DeletUser) for user management, and Add Directory (CreatDir) and Change Directory (EditDir) to manage directory sharing settings. , Delete directory (DeleteDir) and directory information inquiry (ShowDirInfo) actions are defined.

First, when the control point of the computer device 1200 sends a CreatUser action to the broadcast receiver 1100 to add a user in user management (S13), the broadcast receiver 1100 receives the action processing result for the user addition. The response message is transmitted to the control point of the computer device 1200 (S14).

In addition, when a control point of the computer device 1200 sends a CreatDir action for adding a directory to the broadcast receiver 1100 in the directory sharing setting management (S15), the broadcast receiver 1100 processes the action for adding the directory. The result is transmitted to the control point of the computer device 1200 in a response message (S16).

3 is a block diagram of a broadcast receiver sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to the present invention. Referring to FIG. 2, the broadcast receiver 1100 includes a receiver 1101, a demodulator 1102, a decoder 1103, a graphics processor 1104, a display 1105, a controller 1106, and a metadata module 1107. ), A CIFS interface 1108 and an infrared receiver 1109.

The transport stream received by the broadcast receiver 1100 is a broadcast program transport stream encoded according to the broadcast program standard. The broadcast program transport stream is received by multiplexing transport streams generated by several broadcast stations in one channel band.

Here, the broadcast program transport stream may be an audio / video signal produced and provided by an actual broadcasting station, application information which is an application program that provides various additional services to the user in association with the audio / video signal, and the user may easily select a broadcast program. It contains EPG information to help. The application information and the EPG information are included in the data stream predetermined position in the broadcast program transport stream.

The receiver 1101 may be a tuner that receives a broadcast signal of a specific frequency through at least one of an external input such as terrestrial, satellite, cable, or internet network received through an antenna ANT. have. The receiver 1101 may be provided for each broadcast source, for example, a terrestrial wave, a cable, a satellite, and the Internet, and may be an integrated tuner. The receiver 1101 receives a broadcast program transport stream under the control of the controller 1106 and transmits it to the demodulator 1102.

The demodulator 1102 demodulates the received broadcast program transport stream in the inverse of the modulation scheme.

The decoding unit 1103 includes an audio decoder, a video decoder, and a data decoder. The decoding unit 1103 decodes a broadcast stream output from the demodulator 1102 or a stream reproduced through the control unit 1106 with each decoding algorithm and then displays the display unit ( 1105). In this case, a demultiplexer (not shown) may be further included between the demodulator 1102 and the decoder 1103 according to the identifier. Here, the demultiplexer separates the demodulated broadcast program transport stream into audio / video signals, application information, and EPG information under the control of the control unit 1106.

The audio / video signal, the application information and the EPG information data signal of the broadcast program transport stream are respectively decoded.

The graphic processor 1104 processes and outputs the graphic to the display unit 1105 so that the display unit 1105 may display a menu screen or the like on the video image displayed by the display unit 1105.

The controller 1106 controls the connection with the remote network device 1200 and selects and plays the media content stored in the network device 1200 according to the present invention. In this case, the controller 1106 reads the content stored in the connected network device 1200 and outputs the decoded content to the display unit 1105 by decoding the encrypted content.

In addition, the controller 1106 displays a menu for receiving a user's control command and drives an application for displaying a menu related to the EPG and channel information to the user. The controller 1106 displays the list information of the network device previously connected or searched to the user and controls the CIFS interface 1108 to communicate with the selected network device by using the connection information when the user selects a specific network device.

The metadata module 1107 processes EPG information in the form of a transport stream separated by a demultiplexer into a file packet in the form of metadata. In this case, generating metadata means generating EPG information in the form of a transport stream mapped to a broadcast program standard as EPG data in a general file format. In addition, when processing EPG information in the form of a transport stream as EPG metadata composed of a package in the form of a file, EPG information is generated as an XML file. The metadata module 1107 constructs an EPG metadata database 1107a in which EPG information in XML format is constructed and a channel information database 1107b obtained from a data stream. Here, the EPG metadata database 1107a forms a program guide or grid to be displayed on the display unit 1105 and includes a schedule indicating when specific content is to be broadcast for viewing and on which channel the content is to be broadcast. EPG metadata allows viewers to navigate through program guides and find broadcast programs, recorded programs, video on-demand programs and movies, interactive game selections, and other media access information or content of interest to viewers.

The metadata module 1107 accesses the EPG metadata DB 1107a and the channel information DB 1107b to construct a program guide.

The Common Internet File System (CIFS) interface 1108 connects to a network using Internet Protocol (IP) and to a device existing on the network. CIFS interface 1108 receives multimedia data or transmits data packets from connected devices.

The controller 1106 displays a folder name by driving a browse manager that searches a shareable folder of the remote network device 1200. In this case, the controller 1106 searches for the network device 1200 using the CIFS protocol and controls the display unit 1105 to display the searched device and the shared folder list information according to the result.

The infrared receiver 1109 receives a user control signal from the remote controller 1110 and outputs the received signal to the controller 1106.

The broadcast receiver 1100 quickly transmits a data packet through a network using an input device such as a remote controller 1110 to receive and respond to the corresponding information. The broadcast receiver 1100 transmits the user's requirements in both directions while processing the multimedia data.

The network device 1200 may include the CIFS interface 1201 connecting to the broadcast receiver 1100 existing on the home network using the CIFS protocol, and the EPG metadata stored in the broadcast receiver 1100 through the CIFS interface 1201. EPG and channel information viewer 1202 that provides a browser function for requesting channel information.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Receive broadcast information through a terrestrial, satellite, cable, or internet network (S401). Here, the broadcasting information is an audio / video signal produced and provided by a broadcasting station, application information which is an application program providing various additional services to the user in association with the audio / video signal, and EPG information for helping the user to easily select a broadcasting program. It includes.

EPG and channel information are extracted from the received broadcast information (S402).

The extracted EPG and channel information are generated as a file packet in the form of metadata (S403). Here, the meta data means that EPG information in the form of a transport stream mapped to a broadcast program standard is generated as EPG data in a general file format.

In processing EPG and channel information as EPG metadata composed of a package in a file form, EPG information is stored in an XML format (S404). Files created using the Common Internet File System (CIFS) sharing feature are automatically configured for sharing.

The broadcast receiver searches for a root directory IP address and a port number of a device existing on a network through the CIFS protocol (S405).

The channel and the EPG viewer program are driven in the connected network device to display the CIFS shared file stored in the broadcast receiver (S406).

Set the preferred channel or reserved viewing and recording based on the EPG and channel information shared by the remote network device. At this time, the broadcast receiver periodically checks whether the shared channel and the EPG file are changed and updates the changed EPG and channel information metadata (S407).

5A to 5C are exemplary views illustrating a data sharing menu screen remotely through a home network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5A is a menu screen displayed on a remote device that searches for a shared folder of a broadcast receiver through a home network and shows the search result. Shared folders, such as one or more broadcast receivers and PCs, present on the home network are searched. In this case, the menu screen may include connection information of the external storage device, name of the external storage device on the network, folder name of the storage device, and the like.

FIG. 5B selects a shared folder of a broadcast receiver Home_TV01 through a home network in a remote device, and selects shared EPG data and channel information to drive a viewer application. FIG. 5C illustrates a function of setting a preferred channel of the broadcast receiver Home_TV01 or viewing and recording a channel, searching for channel information, or setting for each user through a viewer application executed on a remote device.

 On the other hand, the terms used in the present invention (terminology) are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present invention, which may vary according to the intention or custom of the skilled person in the relevant field, the definitions of which are used throughout the present invention. It should be based on.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and may be variously modified and changed by those skilled in the art, which are included in the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims.

1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an electronic program guide sharing network according to the present invention.

2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a method for sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a block diagram of a broadcast receiver sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to the present invention.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for sharing an electronic program guide through a home network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 5 (a ~ c) is an exemplary view showing a data sharing menu screen remotely via a home network according to an embodiment of the present invention

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

1101. Receiver 1102. Demodulator

1103. Decoding unit 1104. Graphics processing unit

1105. Display unit 1106. Control unit

1107. Metadata Module 1108. CIFS Interface

1109. Infrared receiver 1110. Remote control

1201.CIFS Interface 1202.EPG and Channel Information Viewer

Claims (19)

Generating received channel and EPG information as file and channel EPG metadata; Storing the generated channel and EPG metadata in a shared folder using a sharing function of a network protocol; And Sharing the electronic program guide through the home network of a broadcast receiver comprising accessing channels and EPG metadata stored in the shared folder from a remote device connected via the Internet Protocol (IP) and processing the channel and EPG information. Way. The method of claim 1, The EPG metadata is an electronic program guide sharing method through a home network of a broadcast receiver, characterized in that the channel and EPG information generated by the channel and EPG data in the form of a file format. 3. The method of claim 2, And sharing the channel and EPG information in an XML file format. The method of claim 1, The generated channel and EPG metadata are automatically set to share using a sharing function of the Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocol, the electronic program guide sharing method through the home network of the broadcast receiver. The method of claim 1, Searching the root directory IP address and a port number of a device existing on the network through CIFS (Common Internet File System), which is the Internet Protocol (IP). How to share an electronic program guide. The method of claim 1, A method of sharing an electronic program guide through a home network of a broadcast receiver, comprising: parsing a CIFS shared file by driving a channel and an EPG viewer program in a remote device connected through the network protocol. The method of claim 1, Processing the channel and EPG information, A method of sharing an electronic program guide through a home network of a broadcast receiver, which is any one of a preferred channel setting, reservation viewing and recording, channel information search, and user-specific setting. The method of claim 1, The method of sharing an electronic program guide through a home network of a broadcast receiver, characterized in that the remote device periodically detects whether a change of the uplink channel and the EPG file change. The method of claim 1, The channel and EPG information is received through the transmission path of at least one of the terrestrial, cable, satellite and Internet network electronic program guide sharing method through the home network. A receiver for receiving channel and EPG information together with a broadcast signal; A metadata module for generating the received channel and EPG information as file and channel EPG metadata; A network interface unit connecting to a network using an internet protocol (IP) and connecting to a remote device existing on the network; A storage unit for storing the generated channel and EPG metadata in a shared folder using a sharing function of a network protocol; And A home network including a control unit for granting access to the channel and EPG metadata stored in the shared folder from a remote device connected through the Internet Protocol (IP) and detecting the processed channel and EPG information at the remote device; Broadcast receiver to share electronic program guide through. The method of claim 10 And the metadata module is configured to generate the channel and EPG information as EPG data in a file format. The method of claim 11 And broadcasting the electronic program guide through a home network, wherein the channel and EPG information are generated in an XML file format. The method of claim 10 And the controller is configured to automatically share the generated channel and EPG metadata by using a sharing function of the Common Internet File System (CIFS) protocol. The method of claim 10 The control unit searches for a root directory IP address and a port number of a device existing on the network through CIFS (Common Internet File System), which is the Internet protocol (IP). Broadcast receiver sharing program guide. The method of claim 10 And broadcasting the electronic program guide through the home network, characterized in that a CIFS shared file is parsed by running a channel and an EPG viewer program at a remote device connected through the Internet Protocol (IP). The method of claim 15 And said remote device parses said CIFS shared file to process channel and EPG information. The method of claim 16 The processing of the channel and EPG information broadcasting receiver sharing the electronic program guide through the home network, characterized in that any one of the preference channel setting, reservation viewing and recording, channel information search and user-specific channel settings. The method of claim 10 And the control unit periodically detects whether the channel and the EPG file have been changed in the remote device and reflects the electronic program guide through the home network. The method of claim 10 The receiver includes a terrestrial wave, a cable, a satellite, and an internet network, which are received through an antenna, for each broadcast or share an electronic program guide through a home network.

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