Patent Application
20080301731
The present invention relates to a data processing apparatus which obtains program information from a broadcasting signal, the Internet, or the like, and generates a program guide to display it on a screen.
Recently an apparatus which obtains the program information from the broadcasting signal or the Internet, during power off and generates a program guide (EPG: Electric Program Guide) after power on to display the program guide on the screen based on the obtained program information is in widespread use in broadcasting receivers and recorders. Patent Document 1 can be cited as an example.
Patent Document 1: JP 2003-163854, A
Recently, because of expansion of functionality of the broadcasting receivers and recorders, it takes several tens seconds to start up the apparatus from the power off state. This is because it is necessary that various processes such as loading of predetermined software and discrimination of drive be performed when the power is turned on during the power off state.
Therefore, in the broadcasting receivers and recorders, it takes at least several tens seconds to display the program guide since a power on operation is performed. As a result, even if a user wants to browse the program guide or to program a timer recording for a short time, the user has to wait for several tens seconds to start up the apparatus. Hence, sometimes the user gets frustrated in browsing the program guide or in programming the timer recording.
The invention is directed to solve the above problems and hence has an object to provide a data processing apparatus which can rapidly browse the program guide in starting up the apparatus.
In a first aspect of the invention, a data processing apparatus for generating a screen image is provided. The apparatus includes an obtaining section operable to obtain externally data for generating a screen image, a first data storage section operable to store the obtained data, a determination section operable to determine whether a request for power on or standby of the apparatus is issued or not to the apparatus, a generation section operable to generate a screen image by using the data stored in the first data storage section when it is determined by the determination section that the request for standby of the apparatus is issued, and a second storage section operable to store the screen image generated by the generation section.
According to this configuration, the screen image can be generated and stored during standby state of the apparatus, and thus when the standby is released the stored screen image can be used immediately for display.
In a second aspect of the invention, a data processing apparatus for generating a screen image is provided. The apparatus includes an obtaining section operable to obtain externally data for generating a screen image, a first data storage section operable to store the obtained data, a measurement section operable to measure time, a determination section operable to determine whether the time measured by the measurement section is a predetermined time, a generation section operable to generate a screen image by using the data stored in the first data storage section when it is determined by the determination section that the time is a predetermined time, and a second storage section operable to store the screen image generated by the generation section.
According to this configuration, the screen image stored can be updated to be the latest every predetermined time, and thus when display of the screen image is requested the latest screen image can be used immediately for display.
The above data processing apparatus may further include a display device operable to display the screen image, a second determination section operable to determine whether a request for display of screen image is issued to the apparatus, a third determination section operable to determine power state of the apparatus when it is determined by the second determination section that the request for display of screen image is issued, and a controller operable to display, on the display device, the screen image stored in the second storage section when it is determined by the third determination section that the power state of the apparatus is standby state.
In a third aspect of the invention, a data processing method for an apparatus for generating a screen image is provided. The data processing method includes the steps of obtaining externally data for generating a screen image, storing the obtained data in a first storage section, determining whether a request for power on or standby of the apparatus is issued to the apparatus or not, generating a screen image by using the data stored in the first data storage section when it is determined that the request for standby of the apparatus is issued, and storing the generated screen image in a second storage section.
In a fourth aspect of the invention, a data processing method for an apparatus for generating a screen image is provided. The data processing method includes the steps of obtaining externally data for generating a screen image, storing the obtained data in a first data storage section, measuring time, determining whether the measured time is a predetermined time, generating a screen image by using the data stored in the first data storage section when it is determined that the time is a predetermined time, and storing the generated screen image in a second storage section.
According to the data processing apparatus of the invention, the latest program guide can instantly be displayed from the power off state by operating a specific button, so that the user can browse the program guide and program the timer recording without frustration.
An embodiment of a data processing apparatus according to the invention will be described below using an example of a screen image information output apparatus with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the term “program guide” corresponds to screen image of a program guide actually displayed on a display device, and the term “program guide data” means original data (program information) from which the program guide is generated.
A screen image information output apparatus 1 includes a screen image selector 20, a power controller 30, an input device 40, a display buffer 50, a program guide controller 60, a time measurement section 70, a program guide data obtaining section 75, a program guide data storage section 80, a screen image processor 90, and a recording controller 100.
In the embodiment, it is assumed that the screen image information output apparatus 1 is a DVD recorder which can record a video signal in a recording medium such as DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) and HDD (Hard Disk Drive) and reproduce the recorded video signal. The screen image information output apparatus 1 can output the video signal to the display device 10.
The display device 10 is a device which can display a video signal, and, for example, the display device 10 is a television receiver or a monitor. The screen image selector 20 selectively outputs either a video signal from the screen image processor 90 or a video signal from the display buffer 50 to the display device 10. Alternately, the screen image selector 20 may superpose a video signal from the screen image processor 90 and a video signal from the display buffer 50 to output the superposed signals to the display device 10, if necessary. The power controller 30 performs management and control of power state of the screen image information output apparatus 1.
The input device 40 is a device which can input various operation instructions performed by the user. In the embodiment, the input device 40 is a remote control which can remotely operate the screen image information output apparatus 1. Instead of the remote control which performs remote operation, an operation panel incorporated in the screen image information output apparatus may be used.
Returning to
The program guide controller 60 performs control of the program guide in various ways while generating the program guide based on program guide data transmitted from a broadcast wave or the Internet. The time measurement section 70 measures real time.
The program guide data obtaining section 75 obtains the program guide data from a broadcast signal or the Internet at a predetermined timing.
The program guide data storage section 80 includes a storage device such as a non-volatile memory, and stores the program guide data obtained by the program guide data obtaining section 75. The screen image processor 90 processes the signals input to the screen image information output apparatus through an antenna and a tuner, and outputs video signals.
It is assumed that the program guide data storage section 80 always holds program data for one week from the current time. It is noted that the program data holding period is not limited to one week. It can be thought that the source of the screen image output from the screen image processor 90 is one that is decoded from a broadcasting signal of analog broadcasting or digital broadcasting. Although the display buffer 50 is used for displaying the program guide, the display buffer 50 may be used for displaying other information (for example, menu screen or apparatus status display, or setting screen).
The recording controller 100 performs recording of a video signal or timer recording, and includes a recording medium such as HDD for recording a video signal, a recording section which accesses the recording medium, and a controller which controls recording operation or timer recording for the recording section.
The screen image information output apparatus is not limited to a DVD recorder, but it may be a television receiver.
In other words, the screen image information output apparatus according to the invention may be an apparatus having a function of displaying a program guide in itself or a function of outputting a program guide information for displaying the program guide in an external device. The screen image information output apparatus may include a video cassette recorder, a personal computer, and the like.
An operation of the screen image information output apparatus 1 having the above-described configuration will be described below. It should be noted that in the screen image information output apparatus 1 of the invention, electric conduction is not completely cut off during power off of the apparatus main body, but the apparatus keeps energized and continuously operating in a standby state. That is, in the screen image information output apparatus 1 of the embodiment, power off state means standby state.
The screen image information output apparatus 1 can display a screen image of received broadcasting shown in
In this embodiment, as shown in
When receiving an instruction from the input device 40 (S1), the screen image information output apparatus 1 executes a process according to kind of the instruction (S2 to S5). When the instruction is a request for turning off the power of the screen image information output apparatus 1, the apparatus 1 executes a process on power off request for bringing the apparatus 1 from a power on state to a power off state (S3). When the instruction is a request for turning on the power of the screen image information output apparatus 1, the apparatus 1 executes a process on power on request for bringing the apparatus 1 from a power off state to a power on state (S4). When the instruction is a request for displaying the program guide, the apparatus 1 executes a process executed on request for displaying a program guide (S5). Each process (S3 to S5) will be described in detail later.
In step S2, the kind of the instruction can be determined based on a kind of the button pressed in the input device 40 and the power state of the screen image information output apparatus 1 at the time on request.
For example, when the power button 401 of the input device 40 is pressed while the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in power on state, the instruction can be determined to be a request for power off (that is, standby) of the apparatus 1. On the other hand, when the power button 401 of the input device 40 is pressed while the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in power off state, the instruction can be determined to be a request for power on of the apparatus 1. When the program guide button 402 of the input device 40 is pressed, the instruction can be determined to be a request for displaying a program guide.
2.3 Process on Power Off Request
The details of the process on power off request (Step S3) in the flowchart of
When the power button 401 of the input device 40 is pressed and thus the power controller 30 receives an instruction to switch the power, the power controller 30 starts the process on power off request (S3) if the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in “power on” state at that moment.
The power controller 30 controls selecting state of the screen image on the screen image selector 20 to cause the screen image of the display buffer 50 and the screen image of the screen image processor 90 not to be displayed (S11). That is, the screen image selector 20 stops the output of the video signal to the display device 10 (this process is referred to as “mute of screen image display”). This allows the display device 10 not to display any screen image. Since the screen becomes black while no video signal is displayed in the power off state of the display device 10, the power of the apparatus seems to be off by the user. In this embodiment, “turning off power” means to simply stop transmission of the video signal to the display device 10.
Then, the power controller 30 issues an instruction to the program guide controller 60 to generate the latest program guide (S12). The program guide controller 60 obtains current time information from the time measurement section 70 to generate the program guide corresponding to the current time. The program guide controller 60 generates the program guide based on the program guide data stored in the program guide data storage section 80, and stores the generated program guide in the display buffer 50 (S13). The program guide to be generated is for one week from the current time.
With reference to
During the power off state, the program guide controller 60 refers to the time information from the time measurement section 70. Every hour 0 minute after the hour (S21), the program guide controller 60 obtains the latest program guide data from the broadcast wave, the Internet, and the like to store the program guide data in the program guide data storage section 80 (S22). The program guide controller 60 re-produces the program guide based on the obtained program guide data (S23), and updates the program guide stored in the display buffer 50 (S24). Therefore, the display buffer 50 always holds the program guide which is automatically updated to the latest one at the hour. In the embodiment, although the program guide is updated at the hour, the program guide may be updated at another time.
The result of updating process of the program guide display will be described with reference to
The details of the process on power on request (S4) in the flowchart of
When the power button 401 of the input device 40 is pressed and thus the power controller 30 receives an instruction to switch the power, the power controller 30 starts the process on power on request (S4) if the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in “power off” state at that moment.
The power controller 30 requests the program guide controller 60 to erase the program guide. The program guide controller 60 erases the program guide stored in the display buffer 50 (S31), and notifies the power controller 30 of the completion of the erase after the erase is completed.
After the program guide controller 60 erases the program guide, the power controller 30 issues an instruction to the screen image selector 20 to select the video signal from the screen image processor 90 (S32). The screen image selector 20 selects the video signal from the screen image processor 90 to output the video signal to the is display device 10. As a result, as shown in
The details of process on program guide display request (S5) in the flowchart of
When the program guide button 402 of the input device 40 is pressed and thus the power controller 30 receives an instruction for display of the program guide, the power controller 30 executes the process of displaying the program guide on the display device 10.
When the program guide display instruction is issued from the input device 40, as shown in
In the process of transferring to the power on state, the power controller 30 issues an instruction to the screen image selector 20 to select the display of the display buffer 50 (S42). At this time, since the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in power off state, the screen image selector 20 keeps stopping (mutes) the output of the video signal to the display device 10. According to the instruction from the power controller 30, the screen image selector 20 inputs the program guide stored in the display buffer 50, and outputs the input program guide to the display device 10 (namely, release the mute) (S43). The display device 10 displays the program guide transmitted from the screen image selector 20 on the screen. As a result, as shown in
On the other hand, when the screen image information output apparatus 1 is determined to be in “power on” state (S41), the power controller 30 controls the program guide controller 60 and the screen image selector 20 as follows.
The program guide controller 60 generates the program guide based on the program information stored in the program guide data storage section 80 and stores the generated program guide in the display buffer 50 (S44). Then, the screen image selector 20 selects the video signal of the display buffer 50 to output the selected video signal to the display device 10 (S45), allowing the program guide stored in the display buffer 50 to be displayed on the display device 10. Thus, when the program guide display is requested while the screen image information output apparatus 1 is in “power on” state, the latest program guide is generated at that time, and the generated program guide is displayed.
2.6 Recording and Timer Recording Processes
When the timer recording button 404 of the input device 40 is pressed with the program guide shown in
Then, at the recording time that has been set in the timer recording, the recording controller 100 controls the screen image processor 90 so as to select a channel to which the timer recording is set. The recording controller 100 receives the video signal of the channel selected by the screen image processor 90, and records the video signal in the recording medium. In the example of
When the recording button 403 of the input device 40 is pressed with the program guide shown in
The recording controller 100 inputs the video signal of the program being broadcasted of the selected broadcasting station from the screen image processor 90, and records the video signal in the recording medium. In the example of
The recording operation instruction is performed by the recording button 403 of the input device 40 in the embodiment. Alternately, the currently selected program and broadcasting station may be specified by pressing the set button 406 of the input device 40. Since the recording or timer recording operation method is well known as functions of the conventional video cassette recorder or DVD recorder, the description will be omitted here.
As described above, according to the screen image information output apparatus of the embodiment, during power off state of the apparatus, the screen image output to the display device is stopped thus allowing the screen image information output apparatus to seem to be in power off state, and further the latest program guide is always stored. Therefore, when display of the program guide is requested during the power off state, the program guide can be displayed promptly on the display device.
The present invention can be applied to apparatus which can display the program guide (EPG) available from the broadcasting or the Internet. The application of the present invention covers not only recording and reproducing devices such as a DVD recorder and screen image display devices such as a television receiver, but also devices at least having a function of display the electronic program guide.
Although the present invention has been described in connection with specified embodiments thereof, many other modifications, corrections and applications are apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the present invention is not limited by the disclosure provided herein but limited only to the scope of the appended claims.
The present disclosure relates to subject matter contained in Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-372805, filed on Dec. 24, 2004, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004-372805 | Dec 2004 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP05/24184 | 12/22/2005 | WO | 00 | 6/21/2007 |
