Untitled record

Program switching device and method

The present invention relates to a program switching apparatus and method for receiving a digital television broadcast program and switching a broadcast channel program according to electronic program instruction information, and the electronic program may be, for example, broadcast via satellite.

In recent years, more and more systems have digitized television signals and transmitted them, for example, by broadcasting satellites and communication satellites, and at the same time, receiving television signals somewhere in the distance, such as in general households. In such a system, it is possible to accommodate or access, for example, nearly 200 channels, so the information broadcast is quite large.

However, when the received channel and the image decoded by, for example, the MPEG decoder are turned on after the user presses the selection key, it takes a period of time required for synchronization and decoding processing, after which the desired image is received. display. Furthermore, when the number of channels received increases, the channel will switch frequently until the user determines the program (channel) to be received, so each switch of the channel will consume the time for synchronization and decoding processing, which The delay that actually occurs when data is received will be the source of the user's perceived distraction.

Further, in addition to the above-described problem of response time, if the operation of channel switching is complicated, it is more difficult to switch channels quickly.

As apparent from the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a program switching apparatus and method for allowing a user to select a program very quickly with a simple operation, which is a process of starting reception first according to a cursor movement on a control display. Action without having to wait for the user to make a decision.

The above objects and other objects of the present invention can be achieved by a television signal receiver for receiving a television signal of a channel program to be viewed and outputting the received signal.

The receiver includes a receiving device, a selection screen output device, a mobile device, a selection device and a control device, which are described as follows: the receiving device is configured to receive a television signal (for example, a front-end device 20, a solution) The processor 24, an MPEG video decoder 25 and an MPEG audio decoder 26, as shown in FIG. 4); a screen output device (for example, the navigation button 143 shown in FIG. 5) is selected for moving the cursor. Selecting a desired program from among a plurality of programs; a mobile device (for example, a selection key 13 shown in FIG. 5, pointing to re-manipulation) for moving the cursor; and selecting a device (for example, the selection button 131 shown in FIG. 5, first Pointing to re-control) to select a program specified by a cursor; a control device (eg, central processing unit (CPU) 29 shown in FIG. 4) is configured to control reception of the receiving device and the program specified by the cursor before the selecting device operates At this time, the movement of the cursor is based on the operation of the mobile device.

Furthermore, the television signal receiver of the present invention has a receiving device, a display, a selection screen output device, a mobile device, a selection device and a control device. And the receiving device is configured to receive a television signal of the selected channel (for example, the front end device 20, a demultiplexer 24, an MPEG video decoder 25, and an MPEG audio decoder 26 shown in FIG. 4); (for example, the monitor 4 shown in FIG. 1) for displaying a program image received by a receiving device; and selecting a screen output device (for example, the index button 143 shown in FIG. 5) for outputting a selection screen signal, In order to select a program to be viewed from a plurality of programs by the movement of the cursor, and display the signal on a display; the mobile device (for example, the selection button 131 for pointing to the re-control shown in FIG. 5) is used for Moving the cursor; a selection device (for example, the selection button 131 for selecting the re-control shown in FIG. 5) is used to select a program specified by the cursor; a control device (for example, the central processing unit 29 shown in FIG. 4) is used to The receiving device is controlled and the program specified by the cursor is received before the action of the selecting device, and at this time, the cursor is moved according to the operation of the mobile device.

Furthermore, the present invention also has an audio signal output device for outputting an audio signal of a program designated by the cursor, and the signal is received by the receiving device according to the control of the control device before the selecting device operates. The cursor is moved according to the operation of the mobile device.

When the selection action on the control screen output proceeds, the selected screen will act as a window so that the screen will overlap the image received by the receiving device.

In the selected screen, whether the horizontal axis or the vertical axis is used as a channel axis, and the other axis is used as the time axis. At a position specified by the two axes, the button illustrations for selecting a certain program can be arranged. The type of matrix.

For example, a preset button illustration can be represented and displayed differently than the brightness and color of other parts of the screen.

The television signal receiver proposed by the present invention may also have a memory device (for example, the EPG area 35A shown in FIG. 4) for memorizing information related to the display position of the button illustration, and the button illustration is displayed on the selection screen. And the information is part of the broadcast television signal.

The television signal receiver proposed by the present invention may also have a determining means or circuit for determining whether payment is required to receive the program selected by the cursor.

When the cursor selects a program to be paid and is received by the receiver, the television signal receiver proposed by the present invention may also have a forbidden circuit (for example, step SP68 for the program shown in FIG. 22). In order to prohibit the reception of the program if the user does not pay or the program reception is not authorized.

The receiving device provides a demodulating device (such as the front end device 20 shown in Fig. 4) and a signal extracting device (for example, the demodulator 24 shown in Fig. 4). The demodulation device is configured to demodulate a broadcast wave, wherein the respective channels are assigned to a carrier, and the carrier and the digital image and sound information are multiplexed in a plurality of channels. The signal extracting means extracts the channel signal from the signal demodulated by the demodulating means by the instruction of the control means. When the control device switches channels with the same carrier, the control device transmits a signal extraction command of the preset channel to the signal extraction device. When the control device switches channels in different carriers, the control device notifies the demodulation device to switch for the carrier frequency, and can notify the signal extraction device to perform signal extraction of the preset channel.

According to the present invention, in a method for receiving a television signal, a television signal of a preset channel program is received by a receiving portion, and the received signal is output. The method comprises the steps of: displaying a selection screen to select a preset program among a plurality of programs; and selecting a preset program by moving the cursor to a predetermined position on the selection screen; selecting a cursor positioning designation The program; when the display of the selection screen is paused, the selected operation is performed; and before the moving cursor performs the selection action, the reception of the program is started, and the program is specified by the cursor.

The so-called remote controller in the present invention means that at the receiver end of the television signal, a selection screen is displayed to select a preset program among the plurality of programs, and the cursor is moved to a predetermined position on the selection screen to specify a preset program, and the selection is made. Utilize the cursor and the program specified by the selection device. The remote controller is characterized by a cursor movement operation and an operation device for selecting a finger.

As described above, according to the television signal receiver and the television signal receiving method of the present invention, when the cursor moves on the selection screen, the program selected according to the movement position is immediately received before the execution of the gripping action, so that The switching of the program can be performed quickly.

Furthermore, with the remote controller referred to in the present invention, it is only necessary to use one finger for the cursor movement and the selection action, and the program to be viewed can be quickly and easily selected from a plurality of programs.

The features, principles, and uses of the present invention are clearly described and illustrated in conjunction with the drawings, and the various parts of the figures are represented by the numerals and characters.

Figure 1 is a front view of an AV system equipped as an example of the application of the present invention; the block diagram of Figure 2 shows the state of its electrical connection for the AV system of Figure 1; the front view of Figure 3 is for An IRD2 in FIG. 1 shows an example of the front end configuration; the block diagram in FIG. 4 is an example of the configuration of the IRD 2 in FIG. 1; the flat view in FIG. 5 is directed to the remote controller 5 in FIG. An example of the configuration of the upper surface is shown; the front view in FIG. 6 shows an example of the construction of a small switching lever including a selection key switch 131 shown in FIG. 5; FIG. 7 is for FIG. The joystick 162 is displayed with its steering direction on the horizontal plane; the block diagram in FIG. 8 is for the remote controller 5 of FIG. 5, showing an example of its internal configuration; FIG. 9 shows the segment containing the channel data and the program material; Displaying the data processing status of the encoder in the transmitting end, and also displaying the data processing performed by the IRD2 when receiving the encoder output signal; FIG. 11 shows the memory area for the static random access memory DRAM 25a shown in FIG. Piece Figure 12 shows the EPG data recorded in the EPG area 35A, the EPG area 35A is shown in Figure 4; Figure 13 shows the preparation procedure of a sorting table; the flow chart in Figure 14 shows the preparation of the sorting table Figure 15 shows an indicator recorded in the sorting table; the flowchart in Figure 16 is for an embodiment of Figure 4, showing its operational flow; Figure 17 shows a display example of an operational function table, this operational function table It is displayed in step SP23 of FIG. 16; FIG. 18 shows an overlapping display screen which is combined by using the operation function table in FIG. 17 as a window and superimposed on a received channel image; FIG. 19 is an overall guide. a screen example, this screen is displayed in step SP25 of FIG. 16; FIG. 20 is an overlapping screen formed by combining the overall guidance screen of FIG. 19 as a window and superimposing it on the received channel image; 21 for a general guidance screen displayed in step SP25 of FIG. 16, a flowchart showing details of how it works; the flowchart in FIG. 22 is directed to the overall guidance screen, showing how to perform the program. FIG. 23 shows another flow chart for explaining the working mode of the overall guidance screen shown in step SP25 of FIG. 16; FIG. 24 shows another flow chart illustrating the selection of the program in the overall guidance screen. Mode of operation; the flowchart in Figure 25 shows the processing performed during channel switching; and the front view of Figure 26

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail in conjunction with the drawings.

Fig. 1 shows an example of an AV (Audio Visual) system equipped with the application of the present invention. In this embodiment, the AV system 1 has an IRD 2 (combined receiver/decoder) that can pass through a parabolic dish antenna 3 and a monitor 4 for satellites not shown (a satellite or a communication) The received signal is decoded by the satellite, and the monitor 4 and the IRD 2 are connected to each other by an AV line 11 and a control line 12.

According to the AV system, a remote controller 5 can be used to send an instruction to the IRD 2 via an infrared (IR) signal, in other words, when the preset button switch of the key switch 50 in the remote controller 5 is pressed or activated, The infrared signal relative to this button will be transmitted from the IR transmitting portion 51 and received by the IR receiving portion 39 (Fig. 4) of the IRD 2.

2 shows the electrical connection state of the AV system shown in FIG. 1. The parabolic dish antenna 3 has an LNB (Low Noise Block Downstream) 3a capable of converting a signal received from a satellite into a preset frequency. The signal is transmitted to IRD2, and the IRD2 transmits the output signal to the monitor 4 via an AV line 11, wherein the AV line 11 includes, for example, a composite video signal line, an audio L (left channel) signal line, and a line. Audio R (right channel) signal line.

Further, the IRD 2 has an AV device control signal transmitting and receiving portion 2A, and the monitor 4 also has an AV device control signal transmitting and receiving portion 4A which is connected to each other by a control line 12, and This control line 12 must be, for example, a connected SIRCS^TM(Sony Infrared Remote Control System) to achieve.

Figure 3 shows an example of the configuration of the front end of the IRD2. On the left side of the IRD2, there is a power button switch 111. The power button switch 111 can turn the power on or off. When the power is turned on, a light emitting diode (LED) 112 will It will illuminate, and on the right side of the light-emitting diode (LED) 112, there are two light-emitting diodes 113 and 114. When the DSS (Digital Satel-lite System) mode is selected, that is, from the satellite receiving and outputting signals (DSS), the LEDs 113 will illuminate. When the TV mode is selected, the RF signal input from the cable box is also output to the RF input terminal, and when the RF modulator 41 (Fig. 4) can be output to an RF output terminal, the LED will be extinguished (turned off). ). When a predetermined message or signal is transmitted to the IRD 2 via the satellite, the LED 114 will illuminate (turn on). When the user outputs and displays the message on the monitor 4 for confirmation, the light-emitting diode 114 will be extinguished.

When the TV/DSS button switch is turned on, the DSS mode will be set, and when the TV/DSS button switch is turned off, it will be set to TV mode. When the operation menu button switcher 121 is pressed, the operation function table will be displayed on the monitor 4.

In the up, down, left and right sides of the selection button switch 116, there is an up button switch 117, a down button switch 118, a left button switch 119, and a right button switch 120, the up and down button switches 117, 118, 119, and 120 represent the movement of the cursor up, down, left, and right, respectively. When the selection button switch 116 is pressed, a selection is also determined (selected).

FIG. 4 shows an internal configuration example of the IRD 2 for receiving the above DSS. The RF signal of the output of the LNB 3a in the parabolic dish antenna 3 is transmitted to the tuner 21 of the head device 20 for demodulation, and the signal output from the tuner 21 is transmitted to the QPSK demodulation circuit 22 for QPSK demodulation, QPSK solution. The signal output from the tuning circuit 22 is then passed to an error correction circuit 23 to detect the error and correct as needed.

An integrated circuit card is included in a CAM (Conditional Acces-s Module) 33. The integrated circuit (IC) card includes a central processing unit, read-only memory, and random access memory. And an unlock code for decoding, which is stored with the decoder. Because the signal transmitted through the satellite will be encoded, there is an unlock code and decoding procedure when decoding. After that, the unlock code is read from CAM33 through a card reader interface 32 and transmitted to a solution. The processor 24, the demultiplexer 24, uses the decode lock to decode the encoded signal.

By the way, CAM33 stores the unlock code and decoding program required for decoding, and can also store relevant information for payment.

The multiplexer 24 receives the input signal from the output of the error correction circuit 23 in the front end device 20, and temporarily stores the input signal in a data buffer memory (SRAM, SRAM) 35, and then, The demultiplexer 24 reads the data from time to time, and transmits the decoded video signal to the MPEG video decoder 25, and transmits the decoded audio signal to the MPEG audio decoder 26.

The system proposed by the present invention has an MPEG decoder 25 which enables the input digital video signal to be decompressed for the video signal compressed by the MPEG method after being properly recorded in the DRAM 25a. The decoded video signal is then transmitted to the NTSC encoder 27 for conversion to NTSC format signals such as luminance signal (Y), color signal (C), and composite signal (V). The luminance signal and the color signal are output as S video signals after passing through the buffer amplifiers 28Y and 28C, respectively, and the composite signal is output as a composite signal when the composite signal is passed through the buffer amplifier 28V.

Incidentally, the MPEG2 decoding LSI (STi3500) produced by SGS-Thomson Electronics Co., Ltd. can be used as the MPEG decoder 25, and the functions thereof can be referred to Nikkei Electronics, published by Nikkei Publishing Co., Ltd. on March 1, 1994. Journal (No. 603), pages 101 to 110, an introduction by Martin Bo-lton.

Furthermore, on August 1, 1994, a new MPEG textbook published by ASCII Corporation, pages 231 to 253, explains the transmission method of MPEG2.

The MPEG audio decoder 26 causes the digital audio signal output from the multiplexer 24 to be properly recorded in the DRAM 26a, and then performs decoding processing on the audio signal compressed by the MPEG method, and the decoded audio is decoded. The signal is converted to an analog signal via a digital/analog converter 30. The audio signal of the left channel is output through a buffer amplifier 31L, and the audio signal of the right channel is output through a buffer amplifier 31R.

There is an RF modulator 41 that converts the composite signal output from the NTSC encoder 27 and the audio signal output from the digital/analog converter 30 into a radio frequency (RF) signal and outputs it, and further, when the RF modulator 41 is set to In the TV mode, the RF modulator will detect an RF signal output by an AV device such as a cable box for output to a VCR or another AV device, and the above-mentioned detected RF signal It is an NTSC specification.

In the present embodiment, these video and audio signals are transmitted to a monitor 4 via an AV line 11.

The central processing unit CPU 29 executes various types of processing operations based on the programs stored in the read-only memory ROM 37. For example, the CPU 29 controls the tuner 21, the QPSK decoding circuit 22, and the error correction circuit 23. Further, the CPU 29 controls the control signal transmitting and receiving portion 2A of the AV device so that a predetermined control signal can be output to the other AV devices via the control line 12. Furthermore, the CPU 29 also receives control signals from other AV devices.

A predetermined command can be directly input to the central processing unit (CPU) 29 by means of a key switcher (Fig. 3) of the control panel 40. Further, when the remote controller 5 is used, the IR transmitting unit 51 transmits an infrared signal, and the IR receiving unit 39 receives the infrared signal, and transmits the light receiving result to the CPU 29. In short, a preset command can be input to the CPU 29 by the manipulation of the remote controller 5.

In addition, in addition to the MPEG video data and audio data output by the front end device 20, the demultiplexer 24 also has an EPG data that is output and recorded in the EPG area 35A in the data buffer memory 35. The EPG information includes Information about each channel program (eg, program channel, broadcast time, title, category, etc.) from the time to the next 10 hours. Due to the frequent broadcast of the EPG information, the EPG area 35A can always maintain the latest EPG data. Furthermore, the CPU prepares a sorting table taken from the EPG data, which is stored in the EPG area 35A, and the sorting table is recorded in the static random access memory 36, as will be described in detail below.

The system has an EEPROM 38 (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory) that can store a number of data that can be saved after the power is turned off. For example, the history of the program received by the tuner 21 in 4 weeks. The channel number of the last channel that was viewed before the power was turned off. Therefore, for example, when the power is turned on, the last channel received previously will be received again, and when the last viewed channel is not recorded, the received channel is the preset channel stored in the read-only memory 37. Further, even if the system is set to the sleep mode and the power is turned off, the CPU 29 can operate with a minimum number of circuits, which can be the front end device 20, the demultiplexer 24, and the data buffer memory 35. The CPU 29 counts the current time based on the time information contained in the received signal, and thus performs the associated control function so that the respective circuits perform predetermined operations at predetermined times, for example, automatic recording of the timer with the external video recorder.

In addition, when it is necessary to generate a predetermined on-screen display (OSD) data, the CPU 29 controls the MPEG video decoder 25, and the MPEG video decoder 25 generates predetermined screen display data according to the control of the CPU 29, and The data is written to the screen display area 25aA (Fig. 13) of the DRAM 25a, and then the data is read and output, so that the predetermined font, pattern (for example, the operation function table in Fig. 17) and the overall program guide ( Fig. 19) is appropriately output to the monitor 4 and displayed.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the configuration of the key switcher 50 for the remote controller 5, wherein the selection button switcher 131 can cover not only the upper, lower, left, right, and four oblique directions of the eight directions, but also can be processed. And manipulating (selecting) the vertical direction with respect to the upper half of the remote control 5. When the operation menu key switcher 134 is pressed, the operation function screen is displayed on the monitor 4, and when the key switcher 135 is pressed, the original normal screen is returned.

If the channel up/down button switch 133 is pressed, the number of received broadcast channel numbers will be displayed up or down. When the volume button switch 132 is pressed, the volume will be increased or decreased. When it is necessary to input the number to be displayed, the digital key switch 138 (10 keys) having the numbers 0 to 9 can be pressed. If the manipulation of the numeric key switcher 138 is completed, the input button switch 137 can be pressed to indicate that the digital input is completed. When the channel is switched, the new channel number, channel symbol (name), logo and the headline containing the postal illustration will be displayed in the screen for three seconds. The headline has a simple structure and a more detailed structure. Among them, the simpler structure contains the above items, and the more detailed structure contains the name of the program (playing program), the start time of the program, and the current time. When the display key switcher 136 is pressed, such a headline display screen will be switched.

When the TV/Video switch button switch 139 is pressed, the input of the monitor element 4 is switched to the input (recording player or the like) sent by the video input terminal used by the tuner or the television. If you press the electrically of view / DSS switching button switch 140, the selected TV mode or a DSS mode. When the digital key switch 138 is pressed to switch channels, the channel before switching will be recorded. When the j button switch 141 is pressed, the played channel will return to the original channel before switching.

If the language button 142 is pressed, the system will select the desired language. This function is suitable for the case where the program has more than two languages. If the guidance button switch 143 is pressed, the overall guidance screen (Fig. 19) will be displayed directly on the monitor 4 without using the operation menu.

When the cable button switch 145 is pressed, the TV button switcher 146 and the DSS button switcher 147 function as a function switching switch, in other words, for the infrared signal code transmitted from the remote controller 5, to switch the device type.

When the cable button switch 145 is pressed, a cable box (not shown) is used to receive the signal transmitted by the cable and display the signal on the monitor 4, and the device class code assigned to the cable box is in the infrared signal. The form is launched. In the same manner, when the television button switch 146 is pressed, the signal received by the tuner will be displayed on the monitor 4.

When the DSS button switch 147 is pressed, the signal is received by the IRD 2 through the satellite and displayed on the monitor 4. When the cable button switch 145 is pressed, the LEDs 148, 149 and 150 will respectively emit light, and the TV button switch 146 or the DSS button switch 147 will be turned on. In summary, when each button is turned on, the code corresponding to the device category will be transmitted.

When the cable power button switch 151, the TV power button switch 152, and the DSS power button switch 153 are pressed, the power of the cable box, the monitor 4 or the IRD 2 will be turned on or off.

When the mute button switch 154 is pressed, the mute state of the monitor 4 is set or released. When the sleep button switch 155 is pressed, the sleep mode is set to release the sleep mode, and after a predetermined period of time, the system will enter the sleep mode, or release the sleep mode to automatically turn off the power.

Fig. 6 shows an example of the construction of a small joystick switch which serves as a selection key switcher 131 in which a short bar 162 protrudes from the main body 161. When the selection button switch 131 is switched from eight directions on the horizontal plane, the device will rotate in the direction of the switching. When the key switcher 131 is selected for selective manipulation (operation in the vertical direction), the short lever 162 is pressed down to the vertical direction.

By the way, the model RKJXL1004 from Alps Electronics can be used as this small steering switch, and the body 161 has a thickness of about 6.4 mm.

Fig. 7 shows eight directions in which the short rod 162 can be switched in the horizontal plane. As shown, the eight horizontal plane directions that the short rod 162 can switch are represented by A to H.

FIG. 8 shows an example of the internal configuration of the remote controller 5. As shown in Fig. 8, inside the main body 161 of the small joystick switch, the contact points constituting A to H correspond to the eight directions A to H in Fig. 7. When the short rod 162 is twisted in the direction of A to D, one of the terminals A to D will be electrically connected to the terminal C1, and when the short rod 162 is rotated to the direction of E to H, E to H One of the terminals will be turned on with terminal C2. In addition, between H and A and between D and E, the two terminals C1 and C2 are conductive. Furthermore, when the short rod 162 is manipulated in the vertical direction, the terminals 1 and 2 are turned on.

The CPU 72 repeatedly scans the key switcher array 82 to detect the manipulation of the remote controller 5 and the other key switchers 50 shown in FIG.

The CPU 72 executes various related processes based on the program stored in the read-only memory 73, and stores the necessary materials in the RAM 74 as appropriate.

The CPU 72 drives the light-emitting diode 76 through the light-emitting diode driver 75, so that an infrared signal can be output. Secondly, the details of the satellite system live broadcast can be found in LWButterworth, JPGodwin and D.Radbel in the Nikkei E-magazine on pages 180 to 189 (published by Nikkei BP on October 24, 1994). The technology of the road is a slogan.

Figure 9 shows the generation process of the transmission data, which is performed by the encoder of the live broadcast satellite system, wherein the EPG data includes navigation data, channel data, and program data. The guidance information refers to the information related to all program guides. The channel information is related to the channel, and the program information is related to the program. For detailed explanation, please refer to Figure 12.

In addition to these data items, channel data and program materials will be distinguished for each channel. The preset number of channel data will be aggregated into one data segment. In the embodiment of FIG. 9, the channel data and the program data in channel 1 and channel 2 are collectively referred to as individual data segments 1, and the channel data and program data in channel 3 and channel 4 are collectively referred to as individual data segments 2, channels. The channel data and program data in 5 and channel 6 are collectively referred to as individual data segments 3.

The channel data and program data are then divided into fixed-size data packages, and individual headers are added to each data package, and the data is transmitted to the data packaging unit. In the encoder of the transmitting end as shown in FIG. 10, not only the data items such as the channel data and the program data, but also the information such as the guide information, the video data and the audio data are packaged and transmitted to a satellite for high-output inquiry. Machine, and the BSS bandwidth used ranges from 12.2GHz to 12.7GHz. In this case, one of the multiple channels (up to nine) will be multiplexed and transmitted to a specific query. The preset frequency signal of the machine, in other words, each of the answering machines will transmit signals of multiple channels, but only one carrier is used. In summary, for example, when the number of answering machines is 23, up to 207 (= 9 x 23) channels of data can be transmitted.

In the IRD 2, the front end device 20 is used to receive and decode the channel carrier corresponding to a predetermined answering machine, so that the package data in up to 9 channels can be obtained. The demultiplexer 24 temporarily records each data package taken from the demodulated output in a data buffer memory 35, and then reads it out, and counts the packaging of the EPG data (guidance data, channel data, and program material). The data portion other than the header will be recorded in the EPG area 35A, the video data package will be provided to the MPEG video decoder 25 and decoded, and the audio data package will be provided to the MPEG audio decoder 26 for decoding.

The detailed processing of the encoder shown in Fig. 10 can be found in the above-mentioned article entitled Supporting the Information Highway of the United States on the pages of pages 180 to 189 of the Nikkei Electronic Magazine. In each of the answering machines, schedule scheduling is required, so that the transmission rate is consistent, and the transmission rate is 40 megabits per second for the carrier assigned to each of the answering machines.

For example, for sports programs, there is a strong dynamic image, and MPEG video data will occupy a lot of data packaging. In summary, when many such programs appear, the number of programs that can be transmitted on one answering machine will become very small.

At the same time, for pictures with broadcasters broadcasting news, MPEG video data can be transmitted in less data package because of less dynamic images. In short, if there are many such programs, the number of programs that can be transmitted on one answering machine will become very large.

Fig. 11 shows the state of internal use of the dynamic random access memory 25a. For example, the screen resolution of the monitor 4 is 720×480 pixels, the luminance signal of each pixel is represented by 8 bits, and the color difference signal is 8 bits with 1 pixel to 2 pixels. The ratio is represented, and the number of bits required to represent the entire pixel is 4147200 (720 × 480 × 1.5 × 8) bits. Assuming that a word contains 64 bits, the number of pixels corresponds to 64800. If the word is expressed by a hexadecimal number, it becomes 0 × FD 20 words.

In the MPEG video decoder 25, the DRAM 25a can be controlled and the number set in the register is too large, and the value is shifted by 5 bits in the direction of the LSB, and 0xFD20 becomes 0x7EQ, and again, because of setting The value in the scratchpad must be a multiple of 4, and 0x7EQ is set to a value that is closest to a multiple of 4 and greater than this number, then the value should be 0x7EC.

In summary, in this embodiment, the buffer memory 0 to the buffer memory 2 are used to store image data of the I image, the P image, and the B image, and the respective capacities are set to 64,896 words. Furthermore, the area of 18176 words is used as the OSD data memory area, and the area of 49280 words is reserved as the bit buffer memory to temporarily store the input data.

FIG. 12 shows the EPG data (program guide data) stored in the EPG area 35A in the data buffer memory 35, showing the status of the memory configuration therein, and the CPU 29, as described in FIGS. 9 and 10, stores the EPG data in the EPG area. In 35A, the EPG data is encoded by the encoder at the transmitting end, and the data is transmitted by a data packing unit as shown in FIG.

As shown in Figure 12, the program guide information (program guide related information) (EPG data) will be stored in the memory in the order of the guide information, channel information and program information.

The guidance data includes the current date, the current time, the total number of data segments, each data segment number, the answering machine list and the channel list; the answering machine list lists the answering machine numbers corresponding to the respective data segment numbers. The channel list lists the numbers at the beginning of the channel, and these channels are occupied by data segments.

Immediately following the guidance data is the channel data, which is arranged in the order of data segment 1, data segment 2, data segment 3, and so on. In each data segment, a predetermined number of channel data items are arranged. In the present embodiment, the data in channels 1 and 2 are arranged in data segment 1, and the data in channels 3 and 4 are arranged in data segment 2.

Each channel data includes: a channel number, a channel name indicating a playing station signboard (name), a logo pattern of a playing station, a data identification word indicating MPEG video data and MPEG audio data, and a channel (such as channel 1). The number of programs, and the first program offset value representing a certain location (address), wherein the first program material of the preset channel will be recorded (for example, for channel 2, the program data segment The start (the beginning of program 1-1 in Fig. 12) starts to an address where the initial program material program 2-1 is recorded.

Furthermore, the program material includes the program title, the start time of the program broadcast, the length of the program, the type of the program, the sub-category of the program type, the age rating of the program viewer, and the narrative of the program content (for example, The condition in which the program material is decoded, wherein the payment condition for each viewing is encoded).

Such program material will be aggregated and arranged into individual data segments. In this embodiment, the program material existing in the data segment includes, for example, data in eight channels 1 of program 1-1 to program 1-8 and For example, the data in the channel 2 of the program 2-1 to the program 2-7.

Figure 13 illustrates the data processing performed before the overall guidance screen is displayed before the monitor 4.

The CPU 29 sets a transmission address of the input data of the head end device 20 in the temporary register 24a used by the demultiplexer 24 in advance. After the data sent by the headend device 20 is temporarily stored in the data buffer memory 35, the data is read by the demultiplexer 24 and transmitted to the transmission address set in the register 24a.

As mentioned above, each data package is added with a header, and the multiplexer 24 views the header and transmits the MPEG video data to the MPEG video decoder 25, and then the multiplexer 24 transmits the MPEG audio data to the MPEG audio solution. Worker 26. When the data identification code existing in the header is the guidance data, the channel data or the program data, the EPG data will be stored in the preset address of the EPG area 35A set by the register 24a. In this way, the EPG data will be It is stored in EPG data 35A as shown in FIG.

By the way, after the data transfer is over, the header will be discarded because it is no longer needed.

In this manner, when the EPG data is stored in the EPG area 35A having a capacity of, for example, 120 octets, the demultiplexer 24 transmits the entire upper status signal to the CPU 29, after receiving the control signal, the CPU 29 receives the control signal. The processing of the EPG data will be suspended, and then, when the EPG is displayed, decoding processing such as expansion, sorting, and decoding processing for the compressed EPG data will be performed.

In this way, when the EPG data is operated in the EPG area 35A by the current time, for example, 200 channels, for 4.5 hours, the EPG data can be received by any of the answering machines (instruction materials, channel materials, and programs). Information), in other words, the same EPG data can be transmitted by any interrogator.

Next, the CPU 29 will prepare a sorting table 230 for taking the data of a preset channel from the EPG data stored in the EPG area 35A, and the sorting table is stored in the static memory (SRAM) 36 (sorting) The preparation process of the table can be seen in Figure 14). The sorting table 230 corresponds to all of the EPG tables 240, so that each of all channels (e.g., 200 channels) can be accessed from a period of 4.5 hours from the current time.

The CPU 29 is in a channel from the preset screen area 250 in a predetermined period of time (for example, the 1.5th hour from the current time, as will be mentioned later in FIG. 19) (for example, 7 channels, as will be mentioned below) 19) Reading the program material in the EPG area 35A, the read data is written into the OSD area 25aA in the DRAM 25a as a bit mapping material, wherein the above-mentioned preset picture area 250 is taken from all EPGs. Table 240. Thereafter, the MPEG video decoder 25 reads the bit mapping material stored in the OSD area 25aA and outputs the material to the monitor 4. Such an overall EPG such as an overall guide (Fig. 19) or the like can be displayed on the monitor 4.

When the OSD data of a character or the like is displayed, the character data stored in the EPG area 35A is compressed, and the dictionary is used to perform the original processing. Finally, the read only memory 37 stores the compressed code conversion font, which is compressed. The code conversion font library contains a spelling library and a word dictionary. The system has a spelling library and three types of word databases.

The system uses two bytes of data to represent a word , the first bit represents one of the three word lexicons, and is marked with 0, 1, and 3. In addition to the data of the two bytes, there are preset words, arranged in the order of 0 to 255, together with the remaining one of the bytes, each of which is represented by a number. When the encoder of the transmitting end transmits a predetermined word, it actually transmits the data of the two bytes. In the read-only memory 37, a conversion font library is prepared at the encoder end, and the conversion font library is used to retrieve the binary byte code and assign it to the original word.

Furthermore, when a non-provisioned character is sent out, a spell is taken out of the previously existing 256 spells, combined and one word is sent out, and the spelling is a byte code. To represent.

The read-only memory 37 is described with a correspondence table (address translation table), which contains the character storage address storage location of the character code and the font, and can be read corresponding to the predetermined character by referring to the conversion table. The bit of the code maps the data and writes it into the OSD area 25aA. Of course, the read-only memory 37 stores the bit mapping data in a preset address.

Moreover, the read-only memory 37 stores the mark data for display, and at the same time, the read-only memory 37 stores an address conversion table for calling out a mark identification code and the mark data corresponding to the identification code ( Bit mapping data). After the flag identification code is cleared, by reading the flag data and writing the data into the OSD area 25aA, the flags of the respective play stations can be displayed on the monitor 4, and the above-mentioned flag data is stored in the corresponding An address of the identification code.

By the way, the sort table stored in the static memory 36 is stored by the channel number. When the sort table is used to retrieve a specific channel or program, or the order is replaced by classification, etc., the sorting is performed. The table will be updated. However, as shown below, the ranking information stores the location information (indicators) of the channel data and the program data, the indicator of the program data and the channel data are combined into one group, when the program material and the channel data are updated. The data will be changed in units of group.

The flowchart in Fig. 14 illustrates how to prepare a sort table to be written in the static memory 36. For example, suppose the EPG occupies 4.5 hours of 200 channels, and the minimum time period of each program is set to 0.5 hours (30 seconds), so up to 9 programs can be transmitted in one channel, according to which 200 channels are Up to 1800 (=200×9) programs can be sent. Therefore, in the processing example shown in Fig. 14, the number of groups of the sort table will be set to 1800.

When step SP1 starts execution, the variable N will be initialized to zero first, after which the variable L will be initialized to 1, and the variable N represents the group number (address) of a sort table. For example, the group number can be set to 0 to 1799. Again, the variable L represents the channel number, where any value will be set from 1 to 200.

Next, step SP2 is executed in which the address PCL (PC1 in this example) in the EPG area 35A is used as the channel data index of the address N of the sort table N (in this example, N=0) in the static memory 36. The above EPG area 35A corresponds to the channel number L (in this example, the channel number is 1), and finally, in this example, the address PC1 is set in the EPG area 35A of the channel 1 as the address 0. Indicators of channel data.

Next, in step SP3, in the channel data of the channel number L, the offset of the first program and the number of the program can be obtained, and the offset of the first program is used to retrieve the program LM in step SP5.

Next, SP4 is executed, and the initialization of the variable M to 1 is first performed, and the variable M represents the number of programs in the same channel, and the value is set to any value in the range of 1 to 9. Furthermore, step SP5 is executed, and in the EPG area 35A corresponding to the program LM (in this example, program 1-1), an address is taken as an address N in the sort table (in this example, N= 0) Program data indicators. Finally, in the present example, in the EPG area 35A of the program 1-1, there is an address PP1-1 set as the address. Indicators of program information.

Then, step SP6 is executed, and the system will judge whether the variable M is the number of programs or more. When the value of M is smaller than the number of programs in the same channel, step SP7 will be executed, and the variables N and M will be incremented by 1, so that N=1 is obtained. And M=2. Next, step SP8 is executed. In the EPG area 35A corresponding to the channel number L (channel number 1 in this example), an address PC1 is set as the address N in the sort table (in this case, address 1) Channel data indicator.

Then, it returns to step SP5, and the subsequent processing is performed in the same manner.

By repeated execution of step SP5 to step SP8, PC1 is stored in addresses 0 to 7 in the sort table as channel data indicators as shown in FIG. 15, and further, corresponding to program 1-1 to program 1. In the EPG area 35A of -8, the addresses PP1-1 to PP1-8 are respectively stored as the program material indexes of the addresses 0 to 7 in the ranking table.

After the above processing ends, if it is determined in step SP6 that the variable M is equal to the number of programs, step SP9 will be executed, in which it is determined whether the variable N is greater than 1799, or the corresponding channel data has not left. When these conditions are not met, SP10 will be executed, so that the variable N and the variable L will increase by 1, in this case, N=8 and L=2.

Thereafter, step SP2 will be executed to repeatedly perform the same processing. Finally, as shown in FIG. 15, PC2 is written to addresses 8 to 14 in the sort table as indicators of channel data, and PP2-1 to PP2-7 are respectively written as indicators of program data, and the subsequent processing is performed. Execute in the same way.

Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 16, it is used to explain a processing example in which the monitor 4 displays the overall guidance. At the beginning of the execution of step SP21, it is judged whether or not the preset button of the remote controller 5 is pressed, and wait until a button action occurs.

In other words, when the CPU 72 of the remote controller 5 detects whether a key action occurs through a button switching array 82 or the selection button switch 131, the LED driver 75 controls the opening of the LED 76 so that it can be output according to the pressed key switcher. An infrared signal.

The CPU 29 of the IRD 2 receives the input infrared signal through the IR receiving device 39, and judges which one of the remote controllers 5 is activated based on the input signal.

Then, if it is determined in step SP21 that a key operation has occurred, step SP22 is executed, where it is determined whether the key of the operation is the operation function table key switcher 134, and if so, step SP23 is executed, and at the same time, the CPU 29 executes the operation function table. Display processing.

In other words, the CPU 29 writes the bit mapping data of the main operation function table (for example, as shown in FIG. 17) into the OSD area 25aA of the DRAM 25a in accordance with the EPG data (program guide material) stored in the EPG area 35A, and then from the DRAM 25aA. The bit mapping data is read and input from the MPEG video decoder 25 to the NTSC encoder 27, so that it can be converted into an NTSC-specified signal. The NTSC-specific signal will be transmitted via the AV line 11 to the S video signal or the composite signal. The form is shown.

The main operation function table shown in Fig. 17 can be superimposed on the channel image which is simultaneously received and displayed as shown in Fig. 18. The operation function table is displayed on the cathode ray tube (CRT) 4a of the monitor 4 as a window. The principle of the overlap display is when the data in the preset window display area is read during the decoding of the video material. The bit mapping data is read and output from the OSD area aA in the DRAN 25a, and the above video data is compressed by the MPEG method.

In the main operation menu screen shown in Fig. 18, the window is divided into nine areas, so that a button illustration (soft key) can be displayed for selecting a preset mode in each area. The user can control the selection of the button switch 131 to any of the eight directions on the horizontal plane, so that the cursor (in this embodiment, the preset button illustration is different from the brightness (brightness) of the cursor, color, Or flashing to display, and in the situation of Figure 18, the cursor is located on the button illustration of the overall guide) can move in any direction.

For example, if the button switch 131 is selected to be moved to the left by the generally directed button illustrator, the cursor will move to the other directed button illustrator. Furthermore, when the button switch is selected to move obliquely to the lower left, the cursor moves from the overall guided button illustration to the button illustration of the motion guide.

For example, if the button switch 131 is selected to be operated only in the up, down, left, and right directions, and in order to move the cursor from the overall guided button illustrator to the motion guide button illustrator, the cursor must be temporarily moved to the left and then Move down, or temporarily move to the bottom and then move to the left. In other words, in this case, two-stage movement is required, and if the design of the entire device enables the selection button switch 131 to move in four directions up, down, left, and right, and can also be moved obliquely, the cursor can be The button illustrator of the guide moves to the button illustration of the motion guide once.

The user can select the mode by moving the cursor to the desired button illustrator, and then pressing the selection button switch 131 vertically to perform the selection action (vertical action).

In step SP24, the button illustration of the overall guidance is selected to determine whether the selection is determined. If it is determined that the button illustration of the overall guidance is selected, then step SP25 is performed to perform the overall guidance display processing, and the overall guidance is displayed. The detailed processing will be described in detail in conjunction with FIG. 21 in the following.

If it is judged in step SP24 that the button illustration of the overall guide is not selected, the process returns to step SP23 to continue the display of the operation menu.

If it is judged in step SP27 that the selected key illustrator that is not the overall guide is determined, step SP28 is followed to perform the relevant processing in accordance with the selected key illustrator.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step SP22 that the input from the remote controller 5 is not the operation of the operation function key switcher 134, step SP26 is performed to determine whether or not the operation of the guidance key switch 143 is performed, and if so, Step SP25 is performed to perform display processing of the overall guide.

Meanwhile, if it is judged in step SP26 that the action is a key switch other than the overall guidance key switcher 143, step SP28 is performed to perform the related processing in accordance with the action key switcher.

As mentioned above, the overall guidance can be displayed through an operation function table, or can be directly displayed by guiding the action of the button switcher.

Figure 16 illustrates that in step SP25, the display processing of the overall guide is performed, in which the bit map of the overall guide shown in Figure 19 is written into the OSD area 25aA of the DRAM 25a, after which the bit map will be self-contained. The MPEG video decoder 25 reads out, and the bit map is superimposed on the image of the playback channel selected by the demultiplexer 24 at that time, and is generally displayed as a window as shown in FIG.

In the overall guidance shown in this embodiment, the vertical axis serves as the channel axis, and the call sign (play station name) and channel number of each play station will be displayed. The horizontal axis acts as a timeline and will show the playback time. At the location specified by the two-axis intersection, there is a program name displayed in the array. In this embodiment, for each channel, the name of the program within 1.5 hours from the time is displayed, and there are 7 channels on the screen. When the selection button switch 131 of the remote controller 5 is activated, the cursor 212 displayed in different brightness (brightness) and color will be moved to the button illustration according to the direction of the operation.

As will be described in detail below, in the overall guidance shown in FIG. 20, a program name area displayed in the array (in the square) can be regarded as a program name display area 220, and the program name display area 220 is associated with the map. Display area 250 in 13. Therefore, in the range of the program name display area 220, the cursor 212 is upward, downward, and leftward according to the upward selection (above the operator), downward (the operator front), and the rightward and leftward directions. And move to the right.

Here, if the selection button switcher 131 is further manipulated, and the cursor 212 is moved to the upper end, the lower end, the right end, and the left end of the program name display area 220, the display content of the program name display area 220 will be scrolled, for example, When the cursor 212 stays at the bottommost column of the program name display area 220, and the selection button switcher 131 is operated downward, the display content of the program name display area 220 will scroll up one column. Since the cursor 212 is stuck in the lowest column and the entire EPG table 240 specifies all of the EPGs in Figure 13, the cursor 212 will move down one column. Based on the up, down, and rightward actions, the display will be scrolled in the same manner until the EPG table 240 is drawn.

Furthermore, in addition to the movement of up, down, left, and right, the selection button switcher 131 can also perform manipulations of upper left, upper right, lower left, and lower right. Since the selection button switch has eight directions of manipulation, the above-mentioned cursor 212 can also be moved in eight directions.

The selection button switcher 131 can perform a series of manipulations such as eight directions to move the cursor 212, and the vertical direction manipulation (selection manipulation) of the selection button switcher 131 is used to determine the selection of the program, wherein the cursor 212 to be moved is determined. It is only necessary to use the thumb to control, and it is not necessary to use the other hand to hold the remote control 5, so that the handling is more convenient.

Here, if a remote controller having a 4-way cursor key and a selection button is used to implement a similar cursor movement function, a plurality of actions are performed until the program is selected.

For example, as shown in FIG. 20, in order to move the cursor 212 displayed in the fourth row and the leftmost column in the program name display area 220 (the rectangular area in which the program name is displayed in the period of 9:30 to 10:00 in the TBS 233) To the lowest row and the right column (the rectangular area in the SCFI showing the name of the program in the 10:30 to 11:00 period), after pressing the downstream button three times and the right cursor button twice, you must press The button is selected, so a total of 6 buttons are required. In addition, the button pressed each time is different, so the other hand should be used to hold the remote control.

In order to replace the aforementioned 4-way cursor key, it is considered to propose a cursor key of 8 directions, and in this case, it is necessary to occupy a large area on the control surface of the remote controller, which would hinder the design of the miniaturization of the remote controller. In addition, more buttons must be added, which inevitably affects the handling of the buttons.

In the present embodiment, the selection button is used as a cursor key that can move the cursor 212 in eight directions. When the selection button switch 131 is arbitrarily manipulated in eight directions by using the thumb, the selection button can be used to borrow the thumb. The selection of the program is determined by pressing the selection button switcher 131 vertically. Thus, it can be seen that a series of manipulations moved from the cursor 212 to the program selection can be operated without holding the remote control with the other hand, that is, only the thumb is needed at any time.

In the overall guidance screen described above, the EPG (Overall Guide) name can be displayed, the logo of the station, the content of the program, and the date at that time.

Fig. 21 details the overall guidance display processing performed at step SP25. At the beginning of the execution of step SP40, the CPU 29 first performs a setting operation of converting the channel image into a still image, and the set value therein is received (decoded) by the register in the MPEG video decoder 25. By continuously reading a memory location from the buffer memory 0 buffer memory 2 (as shown in FIG. 11), the static image is set, so that it is not necessary to update the buffer memory.

Next, in step SP41, fixed display contents such as a dividing line in the overall guide, such as a start time and a call sign, and the like, are all written into the OSD area 25aA in the DRAM 25a. Next, in step SP42, the variable N corresponding to the sort table address is initialized to zero, and then in step SP43, the seven call signs (channels) generally indicated in Fig. 9 and the line corresponding to the above-mentioned call sign are displayed. The numbered variable L is initialized to 1.

Next, in step SP44, by referring to the compressed code conversion font and a character code/bit mapping table stored in the read-only memory 37, the channel data index in the address N is read. The compressed channel name string is taken and restored to the original string, wherein the above address refers to the sort table in the SRAM 36.

Next, determine the bit mapping in the string (channel name) and write the channel name entry in the Lth row (in this example, the first row) in the OSD area 25aA, for example, in the figure In the embodiment shown in Fig. 19, the channel name of TOON is written. In this way, the channel name is also written in the channel number, in other words, the number 227 corresponding to TOON is written.

Then, step SP45 is executed to read the start time and the length of time according to the program data index of the address 0 in the sorting table, and the button icon of the program selection is also written at the coordinate position corresponding to the start time and the length of time ( The data is also stored in the read-only memory 37. Thereafter, by referring to the compressed code conversion font and the character code/bit mapping table, the program title can be read and restored to the original string. Next, the bit mapping data is determined and written on the button illustrator, in this way, the program name TOON broadcasted from 9:30 PM to 11:00 PM is written.

Then, step SP46 is executed, and the button illustration coordinate position and channel data written in step SP45 are recorded in the SRAM 36 for the user to select the program.

As described above, until it is determined in step SP47 that the call sign and the program name of one line are written in the OSD area 25aA, the variable N is incremented by one in step SP50, and is repeatedly performed in steps SP44, SP45, SP46 and SP50. The loop processing, if it is determined in step SP47 that the operation of writing one line has been completed, the variable L is incremented by one (in this example, the variable L is set to L = 2).

Thereafter, in step SP49, it is determined whether or not the variable L is 8 (determination of whether or not the writing operation of 7 channels ends). In this example, the variable L is set to L=2, and after the address N corresponding to the first program of the next line (channel) is set, the process returns to step SP44, and the following processing is repeated.

Next, by repeating the processing of steps SP44 and SP51, seven call signboards and program names are written, and when the writing operation is completed, the determination symbol L is set to L=8 in step SP49, and thus the entire completion is completed. deal with.

Incidentally, in the processing shown in Fig. 21, the display contents are omitted for the sake of simplicity, and in fact, all information items such as characters, flags, and the like are written in the OSD area 25aA.

Next, referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 22, for the display condition of the overall guidance in FIG. 20, the processing of selecting a preset program is illustrated, and the user operates and selects the selection button switcher 131 to move the cursor to the preset program. The name of the button that was written. When the program selection is determined, the selection button switcher 131 will perform vertical manipulation (selection manipulation).

During the start of step SP61, it is in a waiting state until the remote controller 5 has a signal output. At this time, step SP62 is performed, where it is judged whether the input signal is the input of the selection operation, and if not, step SP64 is performed to determine Whether it is a pointing operation or not, if it is different from the key operation of the selection key switcher 131, no specific function is executed in this example, and the process returns to step SP61 to wait for the next input signal from the remote controller 5.

When it is judged that the selection key switcher 131 has the action of pointing and manipulating in step SP64, step SP65 is performed to move the cursor to the direction corresponding to the pointing action. In other words, the position at which the bit mapping data is written will be changed to a button illustration in accordance with the action of the selection button switch 131.

Next, in step SP66, for the position where the cursor is located, the program answering machine number on the button illustrator can be obtained. The answering machine number can be obtained by specifying a data segment number from the channel list of the guidance data and determining the answering machine table from the data segment. Furthermore, the data identification code of the program can be read by the data identification code of the channel data.

Thereafter, step SP67 is performed to determine whether to display the program that is played once, that is, the program is paid, and a preset message is displayed on the cathode ray tube 4A, and the user's selection is determined by inputting NO or YES, which complicates the entire operation. For example, when the IRD 2 is purchased, that is, whether the program is broadcasted as an input, even if the program is a program that is paid for each broadcast, and the preset information is recorded in the electrically erasable stylized read-only memory. In (EEPROM) 38, the determination in this step can be determined by the data in the memory.

When the program is not a program that is paid for each time, and the result of the judgment is to broadcast a program that is paid for each time, then step SP69 is executed, and the answering machine number read in step SP66 is set at the front end device. 20 of the station selection control program. Finally, the tuner 21 of the headend device 20 receives the answerer number carrier set by the central processing unit 29, however, when the button illustrator at the location of the cursor is transmitted along with the same carrier in its corresponding channel (when If the number of the answering machines is the same, the carrier (frequency) switching is not required, so this step can be omitted.

Then, step SP70 is executed, where the state of the register of the front end device 20 (not shown) can be read to confirm the blocking of the play station selection control program. In other words, it can be confirmed that the answerer number carrier set in step SP69 has been Upon receipt, step SP71 is followed to set the identification code of the data package (identification code read in step SP66) in the register 24aA in the demultiplexer 24. Finally, the demultiplexer 24 extracts the program package selected in step SP66 from the plurality of data packages of the carrier for the answerer number set in step SP69, and the front end device 20 outputs the inquiry. The machine number is temporarily stored in the buffer in the data buffer memory 35.

Then, a conventional access check is performed in step SP72. In other words, since the pay-on program has been numbered after being broadcasted, it must be decoded and restored. For a program that is not broadcast once, that is, the program that is paid (uncoded program), This is not necessary, and is omitted.

Next, step SP73 is performed to perform the prior setting for the register 24a in the demultiplexer 24, so that the video data can be transmitted to the video decoder 25, and the audio data can be transmitted to the MPEG audio decoder 26.

Next, in step SP74, the decoded start position will be set in the MPEG video decoder 25 and the temporary memory (not shown) of the MPEG audio decoder 26. As a result, the program video and audio data selected in step SP66 are decoded and output from the MPEG video decoder 25 and the MPEG audio decoder 26. These materials will be displayed or output in the form of images and sounds.

After returning to step SP61 to wait for the next input signal from the remote controller 5, if the cursor is moved again, the same processing is repeatedly executed. Incidentally, during the execution of the further cursor movement during the execution of steps SP66 to SP74, the processing operation performed at that time is suspended, and the processing corresponding to the new cursor movement is immediately started.

In step SP67, if it is determined that it is not necessary to display the program for paying the pay-per-view, step SP68 is next performed, and the MPEG video decoder 25 is notified to process the blue package image output.

Finally, during the execution of step SP74, as shown in the overall guidance background image shown in FIG. 20, the program image specified by the cursor 212 is displayed, and the sound signal accompanying the image is also output. At the same time, if the cursor 212 specifies a pay-per-view program and the login is not required to be displayed on the screen, the background image will be completely blue, and there is no sound output.

If the cursor specifies a pay-per-view program, the program will not be received under certain conditions, so that the following situation can be avoided, that is, after the desired program is selected, only when the program passes the program The illustration is completed and the user's billing is completed.

In this manner, the selection button switcher 131 is pointed and manipulated to move the cursor to the desired position, and the instruction to receive the program specified by the cursor 212 is immediately transmitted to the head end device 20, and the receiving process is initiated. Finally, before the selection button switcher 131 for determining the preset program is operated, the reception processing of the program has started. Therefore, when the button switcher 131 is selected to perform the selection and manipulation, the reception of the program has also been completed, and even if the reception of the program is not completed, the program is displayed on the monitor 4 for less time than when the reception is started. The display time required to handle the situation.

If it is judged in step SP62 that the selection action is the manipulation in the vertical direction, step SP63 is next executed to set the display switching of the OSD in the temporary register in the MPEG video decoder 25, which is a window for switching the overall guidance. The screen is displayed.

Next, in step SP63, the still image output set as shown in Fig. 21 and set in step SP40 is also switched.

Therefore, the decoding performed after the screen switching starts in step SP74, and the channel image after the screen switching is immediately displayed as the screen to be received after the still image is erased.

In the above manner, and in the present embodiment, when the overall guide is displayed, the background image will be a still image that is stationary. Therefore, when the cursor is moved and the program to be viewed is selected in the overall guidance screen, the overall guidance screen will disappear, and at the same time, the selected channel image will be displayed. This avoids the disorder and instability of the background image when the program is selected on the overall guidance screen.

For the above embodiment, when the overall guidance screen is displayed, the already displayed channel image will become a still image, and when the cursor moves on the overall guidance screen, the background image can also be fixed to make it a still image.

Figures 23 and 24 illustrate an example of processing in this case. For the processing shown in Fig. 21, Fig. 23 illustrates the corresponding processing procedure, and Fig. 24 illustrates the corresponding processing procedure for the processing in Fig. 22.

The overall guidance display processing in Fig. 23 is basically the same as the overall guidance display processing in Fig. 21, however, in Fig. 23, the processing performed at step SP40 in Fig. 21 is omitted. In other words, in the present embodiment, when the overall guidance screen is displayed, the background image will not be converted into a still image, but a dynamic image will be maintained.

Next, the program selection processing in Fig. 24 will be explained. The program selection process is basically the same as the program selection process in FIG. 22, however, with respect to the program processing in FIG. 24, step 91 will be inserted in steps SP67 and SP69, and step 74 is inserted in steps SP61 and 92, Then, the processing in step SP63 is converted to the processing in step 93, and the other processing in Fig. 24 is the same as the processing in Fig. 22.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the program material corresponding to the button illustration that has been moved can be read in step SP66 via the pointing and manipulation of the selection button switch 131 and the cursor movement in step SP65.

If it is determined in step SP67 that the displayed program is set as the pay-per-view program, the setting operation of step SP91 is performed, so that the video output transmitted to the temporary memory of the MPEG video decoder 25 becomes a still image, and MPEG is The audio output in the scratchpad of audio decoder 26 is muted. In other words, if you want to move the cursor to the button illustrator of other programs, the program animation displayed before moving the cursor will become a still image and be muted.

Therefore, in the processing in step SP69 to step SP74, the MPEG video decoder 25 and the MPEG audio decoder 26 perform the reception and decoding processing of the program in accordance with the button illustration moved by the cursor.

When these processes are completed, step SP92 is performed to switch between the still image setting and the mute setting performed at step SP91. Therefore, before the cursor moves, the existing still image will be converted into a program animation after the cursor is moved, and the above static image corresponds to the button illustration. Then, it returns to step SP61 to wait for a new input command to be issued by the remote controller 5.

If it is determined in step SP62 that the selection button switch 131 is active, step SP93 is performed to set the switching of the OSD display in the register of the MPEG video decoder 25, which will eliminate the overall guidance that has been displayed. The picture, and after the picture is switched, an animation of the program is displayed, and the program corresponds to the displayed button illustration.

As described above, in the present embodiment, if the cursor is moved to a new button illustrator, a static image is displayed on the background, and the program receiving process corresponding to the button illustrator of the moving cursor will immediately start execution, and when receiving processing After the end, the still image is converted into a program animation corresponding to the moving cursor, so that the user can clearly feel that the program has been switched compared to the previously mentioned embodiment.

Incidentally, in step SP65, if there is an input manipulation to move the cursor to a new button illustration before the processing of steps SP66 and SP92 is completed, the processing is interrupted, and then the corresponding button is executed. Illustration of the program (channel) processing.

Then, in the IRD2 shown in FIG. 4, if the program (channel) switching instruction is input, the switching of the still image processing is immediately performed, and the command input is controlled by using the remote controller 5, and the channel up and down button switcher is controlled. 133, or press the number key switch 138 to enter the channel number.

In other words, by manipulating the channel up/down key switch 133 to input an instruction to move the channel up and down, or pressing the number key switch 138 to directly input the predetermined channel number, the channel (program) switching process shown in FIG. 25 will Implement it.

In step SP111, the program image received by the UI is converted into a still image and subjected to muffling processing. In other words, each processing is set in the registers of the MPEG video decoder 25 and the MPEG audio decoder 26. Therefore, when the channel switching command is input, the displayed image will become a still image and be muted.

Next, step 112 is performed to start the program (channel) reception process after the switching. In other words, the central processing unit (CPU) 29 controls the front end device 20 in accordance with the newly input channel and the need of the view multiplexer 24 to initiate reception processing of a new channel (switched channel). In step SP113, it waits until the switching process ends, and immediately after the switching process ends, step SP114 is executed to cancel the still image and the muffling process set in step SP111. In other words, what is displayed at this time is the animation of the channel after switching, and the sound signal matching the animation is output.

Therefore, during the channel switching, it is possible to avoid a state in which image disturbance and temporary disappearance may occur.

Fig. 26 shows another configuration example of the remote controller 5. In this embodiment, instead of the button switchers 201 for controlling the eight directions in Fig. 5, the pointing button switches 201 to 204 and the key switcher 200 are directed to The key switches 201 to 204 can be pointed up, down, left, and right. In addition, in the present embodiment, the wired button switch 145, the television button switch 146 and the DSS button switch 147 are operated in a dark mode, and the light-emitting diode used in FIG. 5 is also omitted here ( LEDs 148 to 150, LEDs (not shown) disposed on the back of the buttons 145 to 147 are illuminated in accordance with the operations therein.

The other key switchers are basically the same as in the case of Fig. 5, although the arrangement positions are different.

In the above embodiment, the cursor is displayed in a preset brightness, color, and blinking mode, but a pattern other than the button illustrator such as an arrow may be used as the display of the cursor, with the emphasis that the cursor can be used as a designated predetermined position. Indicator.

Further, in the above embodiment, although the selection of the program is performed in the overall guidance mode, the present invention can also perform the selection of the program in other modes.

Furthermore, the present invention is also described in the case of application to IRD 2, which can be actually used in the monitor 4 (television set).

In view of the description of the present invention, it is to be understood that those skilled in the art can make many modifications and variations of the design without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and the scope of the invention is claimed. It is intended to be defined, and all related modifications and variations are encompassed by the present invention.