This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-043755 filed on Feb. 26, 2009. The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2009-043755 is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a video device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a video device that receives digital broadcasts.
2. Background Information
Advances in digital technology in recent years have led to digital conversion in the field of broadcasting as well. For example, digital broadcasts have been practical in such areas as digital terrestrial television broadcasting, BS (broadcast satellite) digital broadcasting, CS (communications satellite) digital broadcasting, and so forth. With such digital broadcasting, video, audio, data, and other such individual streams are handled by a common signal format, and a transport stream (TS) of multiplexed signals is sent to a video device compatible with the digital broadcasting.
In Europe there are many countries that border on multiple neighboring countries, so digital broadcast programs that are broadcast by each of these countries (hereinafter referred to as “television programs”) includes one video and a plurality of audio tracks, for example. Accordingly, the audio stream of the transmitted TS is made up of a plurality of sets (or tracks) of audio data made for different languages. Also, this audio stream includes audio data for the visually impaired. As a result, when a visually impaired person views a television program, if audio data for the visually impaired is preselected, for example, the user can listen to the audio that describes the scene in addition to the normal audio. Thus, the user can understand the television program.
Audio for the visually impaired is usually necessary when a visually impaired person views a television program, but video is often unnecessary. However, with a conventional video device, the video is displayed during viewing of the television program regardless of who the viewer is. This meant that, in the case of a liquid crystal television, for example, power consumption by the backlight is wasted. Furthermore, conventional technologies related to video and audio muting are well known (see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application Publications Nos. 2007-089146, 2006-054613, 2006-033677, and 2005-020725, for example), but do not disclose a solution to the above problem.
The present invention was conceived in light of the above-mentioned problems. One object of the present invention is to provide a video device with which power consumption can be reduced when a visually impaired person views television programs.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a video device includes a broadcast signal processor, a display component, a speaker, and a controller. The broadcast signal processor is configured to receive a digital broadcast signal and process the digital broadcast signal. The display component is configured to display video based on the digital broadcast signal outputted from the broadcast signal processor. The display component has a light source. The speaker is configured to output main audio of the video based on the digital broadcast signal outputted from the broadcast signal processor. The controller is configured to determine whether or not the digital broadcast signal includes sub audio for visually impaired. The controller is further configured to output the sub audio for the visually impaired with the main audio of the video from the speaker and turn off the light source of the display component when the controller determines that the digital broadcast signal includes the sub audio for the visually impaired.
With this video device, it is possible to provide a video device with which power consumption can be reduced when a visually impaired person views television programs.
Referring now to the attached drawings which form a part of this original disclosure:
A preferred embodiment will now be explained with reference to the drawings. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure that the following descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided for illustration only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
The control interface 12 includes a light receiver (not shown) that receives operation commands sent from a remote control device, or a button component (not shown) provided to a front panel of the TV 100. The TV 100 executes specific operations according to the operation (e.g., operation input) of the control interface 12.
The memory 13 includes a flash ROM (read only memory), a hard disk, or the like. Various kinds of software, such as application software, are stored in the memory 13. The temporary memory 14 includes a RAM (random access memory), for example, and stores data needed for computation processing and control processing by the controller 11.
The broadcast signal processor 15 includes a tuner, a demultiplexer, or the like, and converts digital broadcast signals received by an antenna N into a transport stream (TS), and then separates this TS into individual streams having a video stream, an audio stream, and a data stream. After this separation, the video stream is outputted to the video stream processor 17, the audio stream is outputted to the audio stream processor 18, and the data stream is outputted to the data stream processor 19.
The OSD processor 16 produces OSD data for displaying images, characters, or various other kinds of data on the display component 22, and outputs this data to the video signal output component 20.
The video stream processor 17 subjects the inputted video stream to image processing or other specific processing, and converts the video stream that has undergone this processing into a video signal. Furthermore, the video stream processor 17 outputs the video signal to the video signal output component 20.
The audio stream processor 18 subjects the inputted audio stream to audio processing or other specific processing, and converts the audio stream that has undergone this processing into an audio signal. Furthermore, the audio stream processor 18 outputs the audio signal to the audio signal output component 21.
The data stream processor 19 subjects the inputted data stream to data processing or other specific processing, thereby extracting various kinds of data included in the data stream. Furthermore, the data stream processor 19 outputs the extracted data to the temporary memory 14.
The data outputted from the data stream processor 19 to the temporary memory 14 here includes a service description table (SDT) 30 illustrated in
More specifically, the SDT 30 illustrated in
Also, descriptors 31 in the SDT 30 and/or descriptors 51 in the EIT 50 include two descriptors 60 illustrated in
As shown in
The video signal output component 20 combines the inputted video signal with OSD data outputted from the OSD processor 16, and outputs this to the display component 22. The light source 23 adjusts the brightness of the video displayed on the display component 22. The display component 22 includes an LCD (liquid crystal display), for example, and the light source 23 includes a CCFL (cold cathode fluorescent lamp). When the light source 23 is switched off (e.g., turned off), the video displayed on the display component 22 enters a non-display state, in which the video is not displayed on the display component 22. The audio signal output component 21 amplifies the inputted audio signal and outputs it to the speaker 24.
With the TV 100, when a visually impaired person views a television program, an operation shown in the flowchart of
More specifically, in step S1, the SDT 30 (
In step S2, the controller 11 starts verifying the SDT 30 and/or EIT 50 stored in the temporary memory 14. More specifically, the descriptors 31 in the SDT 30 and the descriptors 51 in the EIT 50 are verified. Then, the numerical value 63 added to the descriptor 61 (
In step S3, the controller 11 verifies whether or not audio data for the visually impaired is included in the audio stream for the tuned television program based on the verification result in step S2. If the result of this verification is that there is audio data for the visually impaired (“Yes” in step S3), then the flow proceeds to step S4. On the other hand, if there is no audio data for the visually impaired (“No” in step S3), then the flow proceeds to step S7b.
More specifically, the controller 11 refers to the category 71 corresponding to the descriptor 61 and the category 72 corresponding to the descriptor 62, and then the category 71 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 63 confirmed in step S2 and, similarly, the category 72 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 64 confirmed in step S2 are detected from the data table 70 stored in the temporary memory 14 as shown in
For example, if the numerical value 63 added to the descriptor 61 is “0×02,” and the numerical value 64 added to the descriptor 62 is “0×40”, then the category 71 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 63 and the category 72 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 64 are the places highlighted in gray in
In step S4, the controller 11 verifies whether or not the function of “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is activated. The “visually impaired viewer priority setting” indicates that a visually impaired person is viewing a television program. If the result of this verification is that the setting is activated (“Yes” in step S4), then the flow proceeds to step S5. On the other hand, if the setting is inactivated (“No” in step S4), then the flow proceeds to step S7b.
The “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is preset by performing a specific operation with the control interface 12, which is done by someone other than the visually impaired person, such as a family member or the person who installs the TV 100. Furthermore, information related to the “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is stored in the memory 13 (or the temporary memory 14), for example. If the function of “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is activated, then this function is executed when a channel is changed, or when the TV 100 is started up (when the power is switched on). The control interface 12 and the memory 13 (or the temporary memory 14) here are examples of the preset component (or preset means).
In step S5, the controller 11 executes final confirmation of whether or not the “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is reflected during viewing of a television program. This final confirmation is carried out by displaying the OSD 80 shown in
In step S6, the controller 11 verifies whether or not there has been an input operation (e.g., operation input) with the control interface 12 within a specific, preset length of time after the OSD 80 is displayed on the display component 22. Here, the specific, preset length of time is set to 3 minutes, 5 minutes, and so forth, for example. If the result of this verification is that there is no input operation (“No” in step S6), then the flow proceeds to step S7a. On the other hand, if there is an input operation (“Yes” in step S6), then the flow proceeds to step S7b. The input operation verified in step S6 means an operation in which “No” is selected on the OSD 80. If there is no input operation within the specific length of time, then the OSD 80 displayed on the display component 22 automatically goes away.
In step S7a, viewing of the television program begins with the “visually impaired viewer priority setting” being reflected, and in step S7b, viewing of the television program begins without the “visually impaired viewer priority setting” being reflected. More specifically, in step S7a, the audio signal output component 21 outputs normal audio (e.g., main audio) along with audio for the visually impaired (e.g., sub audio) to the speaker 24. The normal audio includes dialogue or sound of the video of the television program. The audio for the visually impaired includes audio commentary describing what is happening on the video of the television program for the visually impaired. Also, the controller 11 switches off (or turned off) the light source 23 so that the video displayed on the display component 22 enters the non-display state. Meanwhile, in step S7b, the television program is viewed in the normal state (or display state). In other words, the light source 23 is turned on so that the video is displayed on the display component 22 and only the normal audio is outputted from the speaker 24.
In step S8, the controller 11 verifies whether or not the control interface 12 has been operated during viewing of a television program. If the result of this verification is that there is no input operation with the control interface 12 (“No” in step S8), then the flow proceeds to step S9a. On the other hand, if there is an input operation with the control interface 12 (“Yes” in step S8), then the flow proceeds to step S9b. If the input operation is made with the control interface 12, then the controller 11 again turns on the light source 23 and displays the video on the display component 22.
In step S9a, viewing of the television program that reflects the “visually impaired priority setting” is continued. Then, the operation of this flowchart is ended by turning off the power to the TV 100, for example. Meanwhile, in step S9b, if the input operation performed in step S8 is a tuning operation of a channel (“Yes” in step S9b), then the flow returns to just before step S1. On the other hand, if the input operation performed in step S8 is not a tuning operation (such as if it is a volume adjustment) (“No” in step S9b), then the flow returns to just before step S5.
The TV 100 mainly includes the controller 11, the broadcast signal processor 15, the display component 22, the speaker 24, and the light source 23. The controller 11 controls the various components of the TV 100. The broadcast signal processor 15 receives the digital broadcast signal and performs specific signal processing. The display component 22 displays video based on the output from the broadcast signal processor 15. The speaker 24 outputs audio based on the output from the broadcast signal processor 15. The light source 23 is used for the display component 22. The controller 11 verifies whether or not the digital broadcast signal includes audio for the visually impaired. If the audio for the visually impaired is included, then the controller 11 outputs the audio for the visually impaired and the normal audio from the speaker 24, and switches off the light source 23 so that the video displayed on the display component is in the non-display state.
With the TV 100, when a visually impaired person views a television program or the like, the output of audio for the visually impaired is accompanied by the light source 23 being switched off, allowing the video displayed on the display component 22 to be put in the non-display state. This saves on power consumption.
More specifically, after the numerical value 63 added to the descriptor 61 and the numerical value 64 added to the descriptor 62 are confirmed from the descriptors 31 in the acquired SDT 30 and/or the descriptors 51 in the EIT 50, the controller 11 refers to the category 71 corresponding to the descriptor 61 and the category 72 corresponding to the descriptor 62 in the data table 70. Furthermore, the category 71 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 63 and the category 72 having the same numerical value as the numerical value 64 are detected by the controller 11. Moreover, the controller 11 refers to the category 73 corresponding to the detection result. If there is a description related to audio data for the visually impaired in the category 73, then the normal audio is outputted along with the audio for the visually impaired to the speaker 24, and the light source 23 is switched off so that the video displayed on the display component 22 enters the non-display state. Consequently, when a television program is viewed by a visually impaired person, that is, when there is no need to display video, the light source 23 is automatically switched off and the video displayed on the display component 22 can be shut off. As a result, this saves on power consumption.
Furthermore, the TV 100 further includes the control interface 12 and the memory 13 as a preset means. The preset means pre-selects that the light source 23 will be switched off and the video displayed on the display component 22 will be put in the non-display state when the digital broadcast signal includes audio for the visually impaired. If the digital broadcast signal includes audio for the visually impaired and the preset means has selected that the video will be put in the non-display state, then the light source 23 is switched off and the video displayed on the display component 22 is put in the non-displayed state. If the digital broadcast signal includes audio for the visually impaired and the preset means has not selected that the video will be put in the non-displayed state, then the light source 23 is switched on and the video is displayed on the display component 22. Furthermore, if the digital broadcast signal does not include audio for the visually impaired, then the light source 23 is switched on and the video is displayed on the display component 22.
With the TV 100, since display or non-display of video can be selected as desired by the user, this makes the TV 100 more convenient for the user.
More specifically, if there is audio data for the visually impaired (“Yes” in step S3), and if the function of “visually impaired viewer priority setting,” which assumes that a visually impaired person is viewing a television program, is activated (“Yes” in step S4), then the light source 23 is switched off and the video displayed on the display component 22 is shut off (step S7a). If there is audio data for the visually impaired (“Yes” in step S3), and the function of “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is inactivated (“No” in step S4), then the light source 23 is switched on and the video is displayed on the display component 22 (step S7b). Furthermore, if there is no audio data for the visually impaired (“No” in step S3), then the light source 23 is switched on and the video is displayed on the display component 22 (step S7b). Therefore, whether or not video is displayed can be selected according to the viewer, which makes the TV 100 more convenient to viewers.
Moreover, the TV 100 further includes the control interface 12 for operating the TV 100. The controller 11 displays the notice information notifying that the video displayed on the display component 22 will be put in the non-display state before the light source 23 is switched off and the state changes to the non-display state. If there is no specific operation of the control interface 12 within the specific length of time after the display of this notice information, then the state changes to the non-display state. On the other hand, if there is a specific operation of the control interface 12 within the specific length of time, then the state does not change to the non-display state.
With the TV 100, when a visually impaired person views together with someone with normal vision, if the specific operation is made with the control interface 12 within the specific length of time after the display of the notice information, then the display of video will be maintained, which makes the TV 100 more convenient for persons who are not visually impaired.
More specifically, the OSD 80 for final confirmation of whether or not the “visually impaired priority setting” is reflected is displayed on the display component 22 (step S5). If there is no input operation with the control interface 12 within the specific, preset length of time since this display of the OSD 80 (“No” in step S6), then the viewing of the television program that reflects the “visually impaired priority setting” is begun (step S7a). On the other hand, if there is an input operation with the control interface 12 within the specific, preset length of time since this display of the OSD 80 (“Yes” in step S6), then the viewing of the television program that does not reflect the “visually impaired viewer priority setting” is begun (step S7b). Consequently, if a visually impaired person views together with someone with normal vision, if a specific operation is made with the control interface 12 within the specific length of time after the display of the OSD 80, then the display of video will be maintained, which makes the TV 100 more convenient for persons who are not visually impaired.
With the TV 100, various embodiments other than the one given above are possible. For instance, in the above embodiment, the TV 100 is given as an example of a video device, but the application is not limited to this. For example, the video device can instead be a projector, a PC (personal computer), portable terminal, or other such video device.
Also, with the TV 100, the display component 22 includes the LCD and the light source 23 includes the CCFL. However, other displays and light sources compatible with the displays can be used instead as the display component 22 and the light source 23. Also, an ELP (electroluminescent panel) or PDP (plasma display panel) in which the display itself is made up of a light source can also be used.
Furthermore, in step S7b in
In understanding the scope of the present invention, the term “comprising” and its derivatives, as used herein, are intended to be open ended terms that specify the presence of the stated features, elements, components, groups, integers, and/or steps, but do not exclude the presence of other unstated features, elements, components, groups, integers and/or steps. The foregoing also applies to words having similar meanings such as the terms, “including”, “having” and their derivatives. The term “detect” as used herein to describe an operation or function carried out by a component, a section, a device or the like includes a component, a section, a device or the like that does not require physical detection, but rather includes determining, measuring, modeling, predicting or computing or the like to carry out the operation or function. The term “configured” as used herein to describe a component, section or part of a device includes hardware and/or software that is constructed and/or programmed to carry out the desired function.
While only a preferred embodiment has been chosen to illustrate the present invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure that various changes and modifications can be made herein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. The functions of one element can be performed by two, and vice versa. Every feature which is unique from the prior art, alone or in combination with other features, also should be considered a separate description of further inventions by the applicant, including the structural and/or functional concepts embodied by such feature. Thus, the foregoing descriptions of the embodiment according to the present invention are provided for illustration only, and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2009-043755 | Feb 2009 | JP | national |