Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6691310
-
Patent Number
6,691,310
-
Date Filed
Thursday, March 25, 199925 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, February 10, 200420 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Faile; Andrew
- Brown; Reuben M.
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 348 1
- 348 4
- 348 5
- 348 10
- 348 906
- 455 2
- 725 25
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
An information receiver comprising a unit receiving information having a package number identifying the information, a first storage section where said package number is stored, a second storage section where reception information indicating whether or not said information associated with said package number was received, and a third storage section where display information indicating whether or not said information associated with said package number was displayed.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method of information transmission between an information transmitter and an information receiver. It also relates to the information transmitter and the information receiver.
Conventionally, when information is broadcast from an information transmitter to an information receiver, the information receiver records whether or not the information has been received. In this recording method, the date and time the information was received and the number of channel through which data was transmitted are recorded.
This method assumes that the received information is television programs, that is, video and sounds played back in real time, and that the received information is displayed at the same time it is received. However, the received information is sometimes recorded on such devices as a video cassette recorder but will not actually be played back. In addition, when multiple pieces of information are received in a specific period of time concurrently, only one of them is sometimes displayed and others are not.
Another type of received information is data, that is, text or still images. Unlike TV program video, these are independent of the time for the TV program, in other words, the TV broadcasting time. That is, a TV program is usually broadcast in a specific period of time through a specific channel according to the TV program, while data may be broadcast multiple times a day or across multiple channels. In this case, the conventional method in which the date/time and the number of channel are recorded does not determine which data was received.
Data, one type of received information, is also easy to record on a storage unit, meaning that there is also the problem that data was received but not was displayed and, as a result, the program rating cannot be determined.
Another problem is that, when the audience received but did not displayed data, there is no device to estimate the reason for it.
The conventional method by which the reception date/time and the number of channel used for reception are recorded does not indicate whether or not the audience actually displayed the received information.
In particular, when the received information is data, the method does not indicate which data was received.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a device and a method indicating which information was received and whether or not the received information was displayed when information is sent from sending equipment to receiving equipment.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a device indicating, when the audience received but not displayed data, the reason for it.
To achieve the above objects, the present invention attaches an identification number, called a package number, to transmission information. A receiver manages reception and display separately with package numbers as the key, and records the reception time and the display time so that data received but not displayed can be identified. The present invention also adds a content code representing the contents of received information to received information, and a display code representing a display priority to transmission data. This makes it possible, when the audience received but not displayed data, to estimate the reason for it.
A system according to the present invention has a configuration described below. An information transmitter transmitting information comprises a unit creating a package number identifying the transmission information, a unit adding the package number to the transmission information, and a unit transmitting the transmission information having the package number to an information receiver.
The information receiver comprises a unit receiving the transmission information having the package number identifying the transmission information and a unit determining, with the use of the package number, if the received transmission information was displayed on a display unit.
The unit determining if the received transmission information was displayed, which is included in the information receiver, may determine if the received transmission information was displayed on the display unit based on a reception time at which the transmission information was received and a display time at which the transmission information was displayed.
The information receiver has a first storage unit where the fact that the transmission information was received and the package number are stored and a second storage unit where, when the transmission information was displayed, the fact that the transmission information was displayed and the package number are stored. The unit determining if the received transmission information was displayed may determine whether the information was displayed, based on the contents stored in the first and second storage units.
The information receiver may further comprise a unit adding a content code indicating the contents of the transmission information received by the unit receiving the transmission information and a display code indicating the display priority of the transmission information.
The present invention also provides a method for use in the information receiver where information indicating whether or not the transmission information is to be displayed is stored, the information receiver receiving the transmission information from the information transmitter transmitting the information. The method comprises the steps of receiving the transmission information having the package number added by the information transmitter and identifying the transmission information, storing the fact that the transmission information was received and the package number added to the received transmission information, storing, when the received transmission information was displayed on the display unit of the information receiver, the fact that the transmission information was displayed and the package number added to the displayed transmission information, and determining whether or not the transmission information was displayed based on the stored package number.
According to the present invention, when information is transmitted from transmission equipment to reception equipment, it is possible to determine which information was received and whether received information was displayed.
The present invention also provides materials for use in estimating, when audience received but did not display data, the reason for it.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the system of a first embodiment.
FIG. 2
is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a data transmitter.
FIG. 3
is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the data transmitter.
FIG. 4
is a flowchart showing an example of main processing of the data transmitter.
FIG. 5
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the management menu screen displayed on the data transmitter.
FIG. 6
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the content code management table of the data transmitter.
FIG. 7
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the data file of the data transmitter.
FIG. 8
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the content code definition screen used by the content code definition function of the data transmitter.
FIG. 9
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the package management table of the data transmitter.
FIG. 10
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the packet management table of the data transmitter.
FIG. 11
is a diagram showing an example of the format of a data packet.
FIG. 12
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the table indicating the correspondence between the channel number and the packet ID.
FIG. 13
is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the data receiver.
FIG. 14
is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the data receiver.
FIG. 15
is a flowchart showing an example of main processing of the data receiver.
FIG. 16
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the user attribute definition screen displayed on the data receiver.
FIG. 17
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the content code management table of the data receiver.
FIG. 18
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the channel management table of the data receiver.
FIG. 19
is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the execution management table of the data receiver.
FIG. 20
is a diagram showing the relation between the provider display code and the audience display code.
FIG. 21
is a diagram showing an example of the format of a program rating data packet.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below.
FIG. 1
is a diagram showing the configuration of the embodiment according to the present invention.
This system comprises at least one data transmitter
10
, at least one data receiver
20
-
1
, . . . ,
20
-
n
, a communication satellite
1
acting as a medium through which these devices communicate, at least one total calculator
30
calculating data received from the data receivers, and a network
2
which is a medium via which the total calculator
30
communicates with the data receivers
20
-
1
, . . . ,
20
-
n
, and the data transmitters
10
. The communication media may be via radio waves or cable. It should be noted that the communication medium between the data receivers
20
and the total calculator
30
and between the data receivers
20
and the total calculator
30
may be the same or different.
FIG. 2
shows the detailed functional configuration of the data transmitter
10
. The data transmitter
10
has five basic functions, that is, a packet transmission function
101
, a package management function
102
, a data management function
103
, a content code management function
104
, and an input/output management function
105
, and four tables, that is, a packet management table
107
, a package management table
108
, a data file
109
, and content code management table
110
. The packet transmission function
101
sends packets to the communication satellite
1
, which acts as a transmission medium, via a broadcasting transmitter
111
. The input/output management function
105
manages input/output to or from an input/output device
112
such as a display, keyboard, disk, and communication device.
FIG. 3
shows the detailed hardware configuration of the data transmitter
10
. The data transmitter
10
comprises a CPU bus
121
, an expansion bus
122
, a bridge
123
, a CPU (central processing unit)
124
, a cache memory
125
, a memory
126
, an interrupt controller
127
, a broadcasting transmission controller
128
, a communication controller
129
, a disk controller
130
, an audio controller
131
, an input controller
132
, and a screen controller
133
. The cache memory
125
and the memory
126
each contain a controller, and the memory
126
contains a ROM and a RAM.
The CPU bus
121
is a bus connecting to the CPU (central processing unit)
124
. The bridge
123
, CPU
124
cache memory
125
, memory
126
, and interrupt controller
127
are connected to the CPU bus
121
.
The CPU
124
interprets instructions and controls execution, and the memory
126
stores programs and data. The cache memory
125
allows for high-speed access. The interrupt controller
127
controls an interrupt signal to the CPU, that is, a signal which suspends the current CPU processing temporarily and makes its own interrupt processing request. The bridge
123
is a circuit connecting the CPU bus
121
to the expansion bus
122
.
The expansion bus
122
is a bus via which data is transferred to or from various input/output devices. To the expansion bus
122
is connected the broadcasting transmission controller
128
, communication controller
129
, disk controller
130
, audio controller
131
, input controller
132
, and screen controller
133
. The broadcasting transmission controller
128
, which controls broadcasting transmission via the communication satellite
1
, is connected to a broadcasting transmission device
134
which sends broadcasting waves to the communication satellite
1
. The communication controller
129
controls communication with other devices (other data receivers
20
or data transmitters
10
) via a communication device
135
such as a modem or an ISDN terminal adapter over the network
2
such as a public network or ISDN network. The disk controller
130
is a controller such as an SCSI disk controller. It is connected to a package disk unit
136
, such as a CD-ROM drive or a DVD (Digital Video Disk) drive on which a package disk
3
, a removable recording medium, is mounted, and to a hard disk drive
137
. The audio controller
131
, which controls audio input and output, is connected to an audio input/output device
138
such as an microphone and speaker. The input controller
132
controls an input device
139
such as a keyboard or a mouse. The screen controller
133
controls a screen display device
140
such as a CRT, LCD, or PDP.
The relation between the functional configuration shown in FIG.
2
and the hardware configuration shown in
FIG. 3
will be described. All functions shown in
FIG. 2
are achieved by the CPU
124
which interprets and executes programs implementing each function. When a function is executed, the corresponding program is in the memory
126
or cache memory
125
. At execution time, all tables and files shown in
FIG. 2
are also in the memory
126
or cache memory
125
. At non-execution time, the programs, tables and files for the functions are in the memory
126
or on the hard disk drive
137
.
The packet transmission function
101
, interpreted by the CPU
124
, issues instructions controlling the broadcasting transmitter
111
to the broadcasting transmission controller
128
. The input/output management function
105
, interpreted by the CPU
124
, controls input/output devices
120
such as the communication device
135
, package disk unit
136
, hard disk drive
137
, audio input/output device
138
, input device
139
, and screen display device
140
via the communication controller
129
, disk controller
130
, audio controller
131
, input controller
132
, and screen controller
133
.
The functional operation of the data transmitter
10
will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 4
is a flowchart showing the main flow executed by the CPU
124
of the data transmitter
10
.
The input/output management function
105
of the data transmitter
10
first displays a management menu on the screen display device
140
(
1001
) and enters the event-wait status (
1002
). The event-wait status refers to a status in which the function waits for an event, such as a click on a button or the reception of a packet, to occur.
FIG. 5
shows an example of the management menu described above. A management menu
113
contains a content code management button
1131
, a data management button
1132
, a transmission management button
1133
, an end button
1134
, and a help button
1135
. Clicking the data management button
1132
with the use of the input device
139
causes a content code management event. Similarly, clicking the data management button
1132
causes a data management event, clicking the transmission management button
1133
causes a package management event, and clicking the end button
1134
causes an end event. Clicking the help button
1135
displays a brief description of each button.
The following describes the operation that will be performed when an event is caused by clicking a button.
(1) Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 6
, the following describes the operation that will be performed when a content code management event is caused by clicking the content code management button
1131
in the management menu
113
.
The input/output management function
105
of the data transmitter
10
checks the type of event (
1003
) and calls the content code management function
104
because the event is a content code management event (
1004
).
The content code management function
104
first displays the content code definition screen to prompt the user (transmission manager) to enter a content code definition. Based on this input, data is written into the content code management table
110
. When the user ends the content code definition, the content code management function ends.
FIG. 6
shows an example of the structure of the content code management table
110
. This table has two fields: content code
1101
and definition
1102
. The content code
1101
is a code indicating the contents of data such as “the data is for men in their thirties”, “the data is for people living in Tokyo”, or “the data is for sports fans”.
(2) Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 7
, the following describes the operation that will be performed when a data management event is caused by clicking the data management button
1132
in the management menu
113
.
The input/output management function
105
of the data transmitter
10
checks the type of event (
1003
) and calls the data management function
103
because the event is a data management event (
1005
).
The data management function
103
first displays the data definition screen to prompt the user (transmission manager) to enter a data definition. Based on this input, data is written into the data file
109
. When the user ends the data definition, the data management function ends.
FIG. 7
shows an example of the structure of the data file
109
. The data file
109
has five fields: a data number
1091
, a data name
1092
, a data file name
1093
, a content code
1094
, and a provider display code
1095
. The user (transmission manager) defines these five items. The data number
1091
, used to identify data, is usually a number consisting of the code of data owner (owner company) and the number of data. The data name
1092
is the generic name of data. The data file name
1093
indicates the data itself. Sometimes, the data itself is a hybrid type file, for example, a hyper text file, composed of a plurality of files. Simple data is such data as text file data. The data file name
1093
usually contains storage location information such as a directory name. The content code
1094
is the content code of the data.
The provider display code
1095
represents the provider's intention regarding the display priority. The provider display code
1095
indicates a criterion on which whether to display data is determined when data is received by the receiver. One of “display”, “non-display”, and “forced display” is selected. Whether or not data is actually displayed is decided by the relation with an audience display code previously set by the audience in the receiver. This relation will be described later.
(3) Referring to
FIGS. 4 and 8
, and
9
, the following describes the operation that will be performed when a package management event is caused by clicking the transmission management button
1133
in the management menu
113
.
The input/output management function
105
of the data transmitter
10
checks the type of event (
1003
) and calls the package management function
102
because the event is a package management event (
1006
).
The package management function
102
first displays the transmission definition screen to prompt the user (transmission manager) to enter a transmission definition.
FIG. 8
shows the transmission definition screen
114
. First, a data number
1142
of data (or product data) to be transmitted is selected. When the data number is selected, a corresponding data name
1141
is displayed. Next, a provider number
1144
of the provider providing the data is entered. The provider refers to a broadcasting company or a common carrier. When the provider number
1144
is entered, a provider name
1143
is displayed. Next, a channel number
1146
provided by the specified provider is entered. The channel number
1146
must be specified for each provider number. Data is sent to the specified channel. When the channel number is selected, a corresponding channel name
1145
is displayed. Next, a program number
1148
of a program of the channel is entered. The channel is divided into programs by broadcasting time. Data is sent to the specified program. When selected, a corresponding program name
1147
is displayed.
When the user has filled out the above fields, a spot number is calculated. The spot number is the serial number of transmission. It is managed by the package management table
108
.
FIG. 9
shows an example of the package management table
108
. The package management table
108
is composed of a provider number
1081
, a channel number
1082
, a program number
1083
, and a current spot number
1084
. The current spot number is an identification number assigned to transmitted data. The spot number is assigned to the combination of the provider number
1081
, channel number
1082
, and program number
1083
. When a new transmission specification is entered on the transmission definition screen
114
, the current spot number corresponding to the provider number
1081
, channel number
1082
, and program number
1083
is incremented by 1 and is displayed in the spot number
1149
, shown in
FIG. 8
, as a new spot number.
The combination of the provider number
1144
, channel number
1146
, program number
1148
, and spot number
1149
is called a package number.
Note that the channel number
1146
and the program number
1148
may be left unspecified. When they are not specified, the value of 0 is specified. When only the program number
1148
is left unspecified, it means that the transmission data does not depend on the program. This is useful when transmitting data to the different programs in the same channel several times repeatedly. When both the channel number
1146
and the program number
1148
are left unspecified, it means that the transmission data does not depend on the channel. This is useful when transmitting data across different channels several times repeatedly.
Next, a transmission time
1150
is specified. The data is transmitted at the specified time. It is possible to specify the transmission time of “0” to transmit data immediately. When the program number is specified, the range of the specified transmission time that may be specified is limited.
When the data number
1142
is specified, a content code
1152
and a display code
1153
corresponding to the data specified for the data management function are displayed on the transmission definition screen
114
. To change these settings only for the current transmission, the content code
1152
and/or display code
1153
may be specified. If they are not specified, the values in the data file
109
are set as the “default”.
When all above values are entered, the user clicks a complete button
1155
. When the complete button
1155
is pressed, the package management function
102
writes information necessary for packet transmission into the packet management table
107
via the packet transmission function
101
.
FIG. 10
shows the structure of the packet management table
107
. The packet management table
107
is composed of a package number
1071
, a data number
1072
, a transmission start time
1073
, a content code
1074
, and a provider display code
1075
. The package number
1071
is composed of the provider number
1144
, channel number
1146
, program number
1148
, and spot number
1149
. When there is a one-to-one correspondence between the provider number and the channel number, one of them need be specified. The values specified on the transmission definition screen
114
are assigned to these items.
The packet transmission function
101
, which manages the packet management table
107
, sends data at the specified transmission time. Each time a record, or a row, is added to the packet management table
107
, the record is sent from the transmission station to the total calculator.
FIG. 11
shows an example of the format of a transmission packet. A transmission packet
116
is composed of a packet ID
1161
, a package number
1162
, a content code
1163
, a display code
1164
, a data number
1165
, and data
1166
. These are created based on the packet management table
107
. The package number
1162
is composed of a provider number
11621
, a channel number
11622
, a program number
11623
, and a spot number
11624
. For each channel, the same value is assigned to the packet ID
1161
which is the predetermined ID of a transmission packet. That is, as shown in
FIG. 12
, the transmission equipment has a packet ID table
117
, the table containing the correspondence between a channel number
1171
and a packet ID
1172
.
Next, the data receiver will be described.
FIG. 13
shows the detailed functional configuration of the data receiver
20
. The data receiver
20
has five basic functions, that is, a packet selection reception function
201
, a channel management function
202
, a content code management function
203
, a data execution function
204
, and an input/output management function
205
, and three tables, that is, an execution management file
206
, a channel management table
207
, and a content code management table
208
. The packet selection reception function
201
receives packets from the communication satellite
1
, which is a transmission medium, via a broadcasting receiver
234
. The input/output management function
205
manages input/output to or from an input/output device
220
such as a display, keyboard, disk, and communication device.
FIG. 14
shows the detailed hardware configuration of the data receiver
20
. The data receiver
20
comprises a CPU bus
221
, an expansion bus
222
, a bridge
223
, a CPU (central processing unit)
224
, a cache memory
225
, a memory
226
, an interrupt controller
227
, a broadcasting reception controller
228
, a communication controller
229
, a disk controller
230
, an audio controller
231
, an input controller
232
, and a screen controller
233
. The cache memory
225
and the memory
226
each contain a controller, and the memory
226
contains a ROM and a RAM.
The CPU bus
221
is a bus connecting to the CPU (central processing unit)
224
. The bridge
223
, CPU
224
cache memory
225
, memory
226
, and interrupt controller
227
are connected to the CPU bus
221
.
The CPU
224
interprets instructions and controls execution, and the memory
226
stores programs and data. The cache memory
225
is a unit executing high-speed access. The interrupt controller
227
controls an interrupt signal to the CPU, that is, a signal which suspends the current CPU processing temporarily and makes its own interrupt processing request. The bridge
223
is a circuit connecting the CPU bus
221
to the expansion bus
222
.
The expansion bus
222
is a bus via which data is transferred to or from various input/output devices. To the expansion bus
222
is connected the broadcasting reception controller
228
, communication controller
229
, disk controller
230
, audio controller
231
, input controller
232
, and screen controller
233
. The broadcasting reception controller
228
, which controls broadcasting transmission via the communication satellite
1
, is connected to a broadcasting receiver
234
which receives broadcasting waves from the communication satellite
1
. The communication controller
229
controls communication with other devices (other data receivers
20
or data transmitters
10
) via a communication device
235
, such as a modem or an ISDN terminal adapter, over the network
2
such as a public network or an ISDN network. The disk controller
230
is a controller such as an SCSI disk controller. It is connected to a package disk unit
236
, such as a CD-ROM drive or a DVD (Digital Video Disk) drive on which a package disk
3
, a removable recording medium, is mounted, to a hard disk drive
237
, and to an IC card device
238
. The audio controller
231
, which controls audio input and output, is connected to an audio input/output device
239
such as an microphone and speaker. The input controller
232
controls an input device
240
such as a keyboard or a mouse. The screen controller
233
controls a screen display device
241
such as a CRT, LCD, or PDP.
The relation between the functional configuration shown in FIG.
13
and the hardware configuration shown in
FIG. 14
will be described. All functions shown in
FIG. 13
are achieved by the CPU
224
which interprets and executes programs implementing each function. When a function is executed, the corresponding program is in the memory
226
or cache memory
225
. At execution time, all tables and files shown in
FIG. 13
are also in the memory
226
or cache memory
225
. At non-execution time, the programs for implementing the functions, tables, and files are in the memory
226
, the hard disk drive
237
, or IC card device
238
.
The packet reception function
201
, interpreted by the CPU
224
, issues instructions controlling the broadcasting receiver
234
to the broadcasting reception controller
228
. The input/output management function
205
, interpreted by the CPU
224
, controls input/output devices
220
such as the communication device
235
, package disk unit
236
, hard disk drive
237
, IC card device
238
, audio input/output device
239
, input device
240
, and screen display device
241
via the communication controller
229
, disk controller
230
, audio controller
231
, input controller
232
, and screen controller
233
.
The functional operation of the data receiver
20
will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 15
is a flowchart showing the main flow executed by the CPU
224
of the data receiver
20
.
The data receiver
20
enters an event-wait status (
2001
).
Assume that an audience information addition request is sent to the input/output management function
205
via the input/output device
220
. The input/output management function
205
causes a content code management event. When an event occurs, a check is made for the type of event (
2002
) and, if the event is a content code management event, a call is made to the content code management function
203
(
2011
).
The content code management function
203
displays a user attribute definition screen
214
such as the one shown in FIG.
16
. The screen is composed of a user name
2141
, a user ID
2142
, an attribute item
2143
, an attribute value
2144
, and a set flag
2145
. The set flag
2145
indicates whether or not the user has set an attribute item. On this screen, the user (audience) types, for example, “Machida 1—1, Machida-shi, Tokyo” into the attribute item “Address” in up to 80 alphanumeric characters which are allowed for the attribute value, or select 0 or a positive integer, which is allowed for the attribute value, into the attribute item “Age”. At this time, the user may reject to specify a final setting. To do so, the user may select and specify the “Reject reply” item. The user may also click the cancel button and does not enter values, for example, because the user is busy.
A content code management table
208
is set up based on these inputs from the user (audience).
FIG. 17
shows the structure of the content code management table
208
. Initially, the content code management table
208
of the data receiver
20
contains a content code
2081
and its definition
2082
. These values are preset values set up when the receiver was shipped. They may be updated when data is received. At input time, the attribute value specified by the user (audience) is compared with the definition
2082
and whether the value is specified or not is set in a status
2083
. The initial value of the status
2083
is set to “not specified”.
Now, assume that the data receiver
20
has received a packet from the broadcasting receiver
234
and that an event has occurred. When an event occurs, the data receiver
20
checks the type of the event (
2002
). When a packet is received, the reception of the packet is considered as a packet reception event and the packet selection reception function
201
is called (
2003
). The packet selection reception function
201
selectively receives packets.
First, at packet reception time, the data receiver inquires of the channel management function
202
about the packet ID of the received packet to determine whether the packet can be received. The channel management function
202
manages the channel management table
207
.
FIG. 18
shows an example of the channel management table. The channel management table
207
is composed of a channel number
2071
, a packet ID
2072
, a contract status
2073
, and a reception status
2074
. The channel number
2071
and the packet ID
2072
are the same as those of the transmitter described above. The contract status
2073
represents whether the audience of the receiver has made the reception contract of the channel. The reception status indicates whether or not the audience of the receiver currently desires the reception through that channel. Even if the channel reception contract is made, the audience may not currently desire the reception through that channel for some reason other. For example, for a receiver capable of receiving only two channels at a time, the audience can receive through only two channels even if he or she has four contracted channels.
If the inquiry result indicates a non-reception status, the packet is discarded (
2006
). If the result is a reception status, control goes to the next step.
Next, the data receiver references the above-described content code management table
208
(
2004
), and checks if the content code added to the received packet is registered in the content code management table
208
(
2005
). If it is not registered, the packet is discarded (
2006
); if it is registered, the packet is received (
2007
).
Next, the data receiver
20
checks if data may be displayed (
2008
). The audience specifies, in advance, an audience display code indicating the audience's intention about the display priority. One of “all display”, “no specification”, and “all non-display” may be specified. The default is “no specification”.
FIG. 20
shows the relation between this audience display code and the provider display code in a packet. When the audience specifies “all display”, all data that may be received is displayed regardless of the provider's specification. When the audience specifies “no specification”, data is not displayed only when the provider specifies “non-display”. In this case, “no-display” means that “data is not displayed automatically”; it is possible for the audience to specify and display data stored in the storage unit. When the audience specifies “all non-display”, all data that may be received is not displayed regardless of the provider's specification. The audience may change this display specification any time and may change it by channel or by program.
If the data may be displayed (
2008
), it is displayed automatically (
2009
). If not, the data is not displayed (
2010
). The data not displayed may be stored in storage units such as a memory or a disk. The data is discarded if it is not stored. In this context, “display” means that, if the data is an executable program, the data is executed.
In this embodiment, although neither a data display time is specified nor does the transmission format (
FIG. 11
) contain a data display time, a data display time may be added. When a data display time is added, whether or not data may be displayed is not checked immediately after it is received; instead, the data is once stored in the storage unit and, when the display time arrives, a check is made whether the data may be displayed.
The data execution function
204
records the reception and display determination results, determined in the above reception flow, into the execution management file
206
.
FIG. 19
shows the structure of the execution management file
206
. With the package number
2061
of the received packet as the key, the function stores the reception determination result into a selective reception
2062
, and the display determination result into a display
2063
. The function also stores the start and end times into a display start time
2064
and a display end time
2065
, respectively. The execution management manages the display (execution) of received data. In the display start time column, the time at which the data receiver
20
automatically displays data, as well as the time at which the user displays data, is recorded.
The display
2063
of the execution management file
206
is not always required. If it is omitted, “displayed” is assumed if the value of the display end time
2065
is larger than the value of the display start time
2064
; otherwise, “not displayed” is assumed.
In the manner described above, data packets are sent from the data transmitter
10
to the data receivers
20
-
1
-
20
-
n.
Thus, the execution management files
206
recorded by all the data receivers
20
-
n
are sent to, and calculated by, the total calculator
30
at a regular interval or when the audience returns a response to received data. The data execution function
204
sends the contents of the execution management file
206
via the input/output management function
205
. This is called the transmission of program rating data.
FIG. 21
shows the format of program rating data
215
. The program rating data
215
is composed of the following five items: a destination address
2151
, an audience ID
2152
, a package number
2153
, history data
2154
, and reply data
2155
. The destination address
2151
, preset in the data receiver
20
, is an address used to communicate with the total calculator
30
. The audience ID
2152
, usually obtained from the IC card device
238
, is an ID identifying the audience. The package number
2153
is the package number of a received packet. The history data
2154
is composed of the following four items: a selective reception
2062
, display
2063
, display start time
2064
, and display end time
2065
. The reply data
2155
is stored when the reception data requests the audience to reply and when the audience has replied.
The display
2063
of the program rating data
215
is not always required. When it is omitted, “displayed” is assumed if the value of the display end time
2065
is larger than the value of the display start time
2064
; otherwise, “not displayed” is assumed.
The program rating data
215
, if collected from the receivers of a specific number of people, allows us to understand the status of audience and/or trend of audience. The collection ratio of program rating data on a package number indicates the reception ratio of the data.
Combining the “selective reception” item in the program rating data with the contents of the packet management table
107
previously sent from the transmission station allows us to estimate which content code's data the audience received or rejected, that is, why the audience rejected the reception of the data.
This is because the audience attribute may be estimated from the content code that is specified for him or her. The “display” item indicates whether the audience rejected the display or not. The “display start time” item indicates whether the data is displayed immediately after reception or at a later time. The “display end time” item allows us to estimate how much the audience is interested in the data.
Claims
- 1. An information receiver comprising:a broadcasting transmitter for transmitting a plurality of data to an information receiver which selects a specified data among said plurality of data added to a broadcasting program on a basis of contents of data and determines as to whether or not said specified data selected should be displayed; and an input controller for adding display codes to said plurality of data, said display codes enabling a forced display of data in said information receiver, when said information receiver rejects to display data.
- 2. An information transmitting method, comprising the steps of:adding display codes to a plurality of data, said display codes enabling a forced display of data in an information receiver transmitting said plurality of data to an audience who selects a specified data among a plurality of data added to a broadcasting program on a basis of contents of data determines as to whether or not said specified data selected should be displayed; and forcedly displaying a data, when enabled by said display code when said information receiver rejects to display a data.
- 3. A transmitter for transmitting a data added to a broadcasting program, comprising:a transmission unit for transmitting said data in plurality of times through a predetermined channel in a day and/or through multiple channels to a receiver which determines as to whether or not said data should be received, receives said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be received, determines as to whether or not said data should be displayed, displays said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed, and creates a management file including said determination results as to whether or not said data should be received and said determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed; a transmission control unit for controlling a transmission of said data; and a central processing unit for instructing said transmission control unit to transmit said data at a predetermined time, wherein said central processing unit adds a display code to said data, said display code being used for forcedly displaying said data in said receiver in case of said receiver rejects to display said data.
- 4. A transmitter for transmitting a data added to a broadcasting program, comprising:a transmission unit for transmitting said data to a receiver which determines as to whether or not said data should be received, receives said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be received, determines as to whether or not said data should be displayed, displays said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed, and creates a management file including said determination results as to whether or not said data should be received and said determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed; a transmission control unit for controlling a transmission of said data; and a central processing unit for instructing said transmission control unit to transmit said data at a predetermined time, wherein said central processing unit adds a display code to said data, said display code being used for forcedly displaying said data in said receiver in case of said receiver rejects to display said data.
- 5. A transmitter according to claim 4, wherein said central processing unit adds a content code for identifying contents of said data to said data.
- 6. A transmitter for transmitting a data which is different from a broadcasting program, comprising:a central processing unit for adding a display code to said data, said display code being used for forcedly displaying said data in a receiver in case of said receiver rejects to display said data; and a transmission unit for transmitting data added with said display code to said receiver which determines as to whether or not said data should be received, receives said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be received, determines as to whether or not said data should be displayed, displays said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed, and creates a management file including said determination results as to whether or not said data should be received and said determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed.
- 7. A method of transmitting a data which different from a broadcasting program, comprising the steps of:adding a display code to said data, said display code being used to forcedly displaying said data in a receiver in case said receiver rejects to display said data; and transmitting data added with said display code to said receiver which determines as to whether or not said data should be received, receives said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be received, determines as to whether or not said data should be displayed, displays said data on a basis of determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed, and creates a management file including said determination results as to whether or not said data should be received and said determination results as to whether or not said data should be displayed.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
10-084131 |
Mar 1998 |
JP |
|
US Referenced Citations (10)