JP2011160150A - Video display control device, and video display control method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a video display control device and a video display control method coping towards the convenience of the handling of a user to various services provided through a network. <P>SOLUTION: When the display of a retrieval window 50 is required during the display of an EPG 40, the retrieval window 50 is displayed on the EPG 40. When a retrieval keyword is input to the retrieval window 50 and determined, a retrieval processing is carried out. A browser 16 receives information (data) related to the result of a retrieval service from a server 31. The EPG 40 and a browser screen 60 are displayed simultaneously on a display 18. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a video display control apparatus and a video display control method for controlling to display a web page via a network, for example.

  A digital broadcast receiver that receives digital television broadcasts accesses an external server via a network, displays the accessed web page (website), and various contents (video, audio, text, etc.) distributed from the server Etc.) are displayed.

The service via the network is still in the development stage and tends to be improved in order to make the user's handling more convenient.
Patent Document 1 discloses a television receiver that has a multi-screen function and a web browser function and can perform page transition of the web browser without using the hand of the viewer.

JP 2007-318269 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a video display control apparatus and a video display control method that deal with various services provided via a network so that the user can easily handle them. The main purpose is to do.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and its main features are as follows. That is, the video display composition control device of the present invention is included in the first receiving module that receives program information, the electronic program guide creation module that creates an electronic program guide based on the program information, and the electronic program guide. A selection module for selecting a program, a second reception module for receiving information from a server via a network, a screen division module for dividing one screen into at least a first screen region and a second screen region, The electronic program guide is displayed in the first screen area, and information received from the server and related to the program selected by the selection module is displayed in the second screen area. And a display control module for controlling the display.

  The video display control method of the present invention includes a step of receiving program information, a step of creating an electronic program guide based on the program information, a step of receiving information from a server via a network, A step of dividing the screen into at least a first screen region and a second screen region; and displaying the electronic program guide in the first screen region, information from the server, and a selected program And displaying information related to the program in the second screen area.

  In the present invention, the EPG and information received from the server and related to the selected program are simultaneously displayed. Therefore, it is possible to easily access the related information of the program selected on the EPG, and the convenience for the user can be improved.

It is a block diagram which shows the main signal processing systems of the video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of EPG displayed with the video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a flowchart figure which shows the operation example of the video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows EPG and search window which are displayed with the image | video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows EPG and the browser screen of the video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows EPG and the browser screen of the video display control apparatus which concerns on this embodiment.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a video display control apparatus 100 described in the following embodiment. Specifically, the video display control apparatus 100 corresponds to, for example, a digital television receiver that receives digital broadcasts, a set-top box, or a home server. In this embodiment, a digital television receiver will be described below as an example.

  The video display control apparatus 100 includes, for example, a microprocessor and includes a control module 10 that controls various operations in an integrated manner. The control module 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a RAM 12, and a ROM 13. The RAM 12 is a memory that stores various data including data necessary for the data processing of the CPU 11. In addition, you may operate | move as a buffer memory which stores the data of the content (for example, moving image content) received from the external server. The ROM 13 is a read-only memory and stores various data including the program of the CPU 11. The ROM 13 stores a program for the browser 16 and application programs.

  The video display control device 100 includes a remote control receiving module 14. The remote control receiving module 14 receives operation information transmitted from, for example, a remote controller (remote controller) 20 that is an input operation device. The remote controller 20 transmits an operation signal for transmitting an operation desired by the user to the control module 10 by wireless communication using infrared rays, for example. The remote controller 20 includes various keys such as a selection key (up / down key and left / right key) for performing a selection operation using a cursor, which will be described later, a determination key for performing a determination operation, and an end key for ending an EPG display or browser screen. Contains operation keys.

  The video display control apparatus 100 includes a communication processing module 15, a browser 16, a video / audio decoder 17, a display 18, and a speaker 19. The communication processing module 15 is connected to a network 30 such as the Internet, and is configured to be accessible to an external server 31 via the network 30. Then, the communication processing module 15 performs processing for communicating information (including moving image content, still image content, text content, etc.) with the server 31.

  The browser 16 is composed of various software and the like, and includes processing such as generation of a browser screen 60 and reproduction of a moving image, which will be described later, and information received from the server 31 (web page data, video, audio, text data, etc. Etc.) are converted based on the program to construct a screen, and reproduction processing for displaying it on the display 18 is executed. The video display control device 100 displays the information received from the server 31 on the display 18 by the functions of the browser 16 and the control module 10.

  The video / audio decoder 17 decodes various information received from the server 31 and the broadcast wave received from the antenna 32. The display 18 is a display device that reproduces the video signal decoded by the video / audio decoder 17 and the video signal reproduced by the browser 16 on a screen. The speaker 19 reproduces and outputs the audio signal decoded by the video / audio decoder 17.

  As described above, the video display control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment is not limited to receiving functions such as digital terrestrial broadcasting, BS broadcasting, and CS broadcasting, but also for web pages by services using the network 30 and the server 31 (so-called Internet services). It has a function of receiving information and reproducing it on the display 18 or the speaker 10.

  The server 31 of this embodiment includes a search engine, and realizes a service for searching for information (web page, image file, net news, etc.) existing on the Internet. Alternatively, a video delivery service such as a movie by VOD (Video On Demand) may be provided.

  The control module 10 includes a program guide creation module 21. The program guide creation module 21 receives electronic program guide (EPG) information included in the broadcast wave received by the antenna 32 and / or program information (EPG information) included in a signal received from the server 31 via the communication processing module 15. EPG is created based on this. An EPG 40 shown in FIG. 2 is an example of an EPG displayed on the display 18. The EPG 40 is displayed on the display 18 based on a predetermined operation by the user (for example, pressing a program guide call button on the remote controller 20). The EPG 40 has a channel axis 41 in which a plurality of (five in the case of FIG. 2) channel display frames corresponding to services (broadcast stations) are arranged in the horizontal direction, and unit times (in the drawing, time series continuous in the vertical direction). A time axis 42 in which a plurality of time frames (5 hours in the case of FIG. 2) corresponding to one hour is arranged. Various information (A1 to A5, B1 to B4, C1 to C4, D1 to D4, and E1 to E4) such as the titles and program contents of the programs scheduled to be broadcast are obtained from the channel axis 41 and the time axis 42. It is displayed in each area (program cell) designated by. Here, the columns of broadcasting stations A to E indicate program configurations such as terrestrial digital, BS, and CS received from the antenna 32.

  The user operates the cursor 43 on the EPG 40 using the up / down key or the left / right key of the remote controller 20 or performs a determination operation, thereby selecting viewing / listening of each program, recording reservation, or detailed information (program content). And information on performers). Further, the EPG 40 of the present embodiment includes an operation guide for the remote controller 20. For example, the guide 44 indicates that when the blue color button of the remote controller 20 is pressed while the EPG 40 is displayed, an EPG including the current viewing time is displayed. The guide 45 indicates that when the red color button of the remote controller 20 is pressed down, a GUI prompting the user to specify the date and time of the displayed EPG is displayed, and the EPG having a desired date and time can be displayed according to the GUI. The guide 46 indicates that when the green color button of the remote controller 20 is depressed, a detailed description of the program selected by the cursor 43 can be displayed. The guide 47 indicates that when the yellow color button of the remote controller 20 is pressed down, a keyword search function using the program information (program information) selected by the cursor 43 can be executed. This point will be described later.

The EPG 40 can also create a program guide using only the program information received from the server 31. The EPG 40 combines the program information acquired from the server 31 and the program information received from the broadcasting station by the antenna 32 into one program guide. A program guide may be configured.

  The control module 10 includes a screen division module 22 and a display control module 23. The screen division module 22 performs control to divide the screen of the display 18 into at least a first screen area and a second screen area. The display control module 23 controls various menu displays / GUI displays on the display 18. The display control module 23 displays the EPG 40 in the first screen area, and displays information received from the server 31 and related to the program selected by the user in the second screen area. Control to do. 4 shows a search window 50 including a search keyword input window (hereinafter referred to as an input window) 51 for the display control module 23 to receive information related to the user-selected program from the server 31. Includes a search window display module (not shown) for controlling the EPG 40 to be displayed on the same screen.

  Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, the control module 10 includes a keyword extraction module (not shown) that extracts candidate keywords to be input to the input window 51 from EPG information received from a broadcast wave or the like. The extracted keywords are displayed in the candidate list window 52. The candidate list window 52 includes keywords extracted from the EPG information corresponding to the user-selected program. It is preferable for convenience of the user that the program information selected in conjunction with the cursor operation 43 is extracted and the candidate list window 52 is changed as needed. That is, it is preferable that a candidate list corresponding to the program selected by the cursor operation 43 is displayed.

Next, the search function based on the program information of the selected program in the video display control apparatus 100 described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
Based on a predetermined operation by the user (for example, pressing a program guide call button on the remote controller 20), an EPG 40 as shown in FIG. 2 is displayed on the display 18 (step 301).

Next, it is determined whether or not the search window 50 is requested to be displayed while the EPG 40 is being displayed (No in Step 302) (Step 303). If there is no request to display the search window 50 during display of the EPG 40, the process returns to step 302. If there is a request for displaying the search window 50 while the EPG 40 is being displayed, that is, if the user performs a predetermined operation for displaying the search window 50, the search window 50 as shown in FIG. 4 is controlled based on the control of the display control module 23. Is displayed on the EPG 40 (Yes in step 303). The predetermined operation here is indicated by, for example, a guide 47 in a state where a predetermined program (program A1 in this embodiment) to be searched by the user is selected and the program is selected. As described above, the yellow color button of the remote controller 20 is depressed.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the search window 50 is displayed so as to be superimposed on the EPG 40. However, the position where the search window 50 is arranged is arbitrary. The search window 50 includes, for example, an input window 51, a candidate list window 52, and a decision window 53. The input window 51 is a window for inputting a keyword (search target keyword) to be a search service target of the server 31. The candidate list window 52 is EPG information stored in the RAM 12 or the ROM 13, and a keyword extracted by the control module 10 (keyword extraction module) from the EPG information corresponding to the selected program (program A1) is arranged. The window to be That is, the keywords included in the candidate list window 52 include the title, performer, genre, and the like of the program selected by the cursor 43. The candidate list window 52 may be configured to be controlled by the control module 10 (keyword extraction module) so that a history that the user has previously input is displayed.

  Next, while the search window 50 as shown in FIG. 3 is being displayed, it is determined whether or not a search target keyword has been determined (step 304). When the search target keyword is not determined (for example, when the search window 50 is canceled), the process returns to step 302.

  When a search target keyword is input to the input window 51 and a determination operation is performed (Yes in step 304), the browser 16 is activated and search processing is executed (step 305). For example, a determination operation (for example, selection / determination operation of the determination button 52) is performed in a state where a desired search target keyword is selected from the candidate list window 52 by remote control operation (for example, up / down key operation) and input to the input window 51. Then, the browser 16 is activated and the search process is executed on the server 31 side. That is, when the user's request is received via the remote control receiver 14, the browser 16 is activated, and the search request (of the server 31 is sent to the server 31 via the network 30 using a URL registered in advance in the ROM or the like. Request to receive search service). Specifically, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, when “Nobio” is input to the input window 51 as a search target keyword and the search process is executed, “Nobio” is set as a keyword to the server 31. To execute the specified search service.

Next, when the browser 16 receives information (data) related to the result of the search service from the server 31, the browser 16 analyzes the data and includes necessary processing (for example, processing for displaying the browser screen 60 of FIG. ) Is executed based on the control of the display control module 23. The data received from the server 31 is information described in, for example, HTML (hypertext markup language) or BML (Broadcast Markup Language), and executes various kinds of processing called image information such as still images and scripts. Program (software) for

  Here, the browser 16 is activated, and the display 18 is controlled based on the control of the division control module 22 as shown in FIG. 5 in the first screen area (the left half of FIG. 5) and the second screen area (FIG. Is divided into the right half). Based on the control of the display control module 23, the EPG 40 is displayed in the first screen area, and a screen including the search result received from the server 31 is displayed as the browser screen 60 in the second area. That is, the EPG 40 and the browser screen 60 are simultaneously displayed on the display 18 (step 306). In the present embodiment, because the EPG 40 and the browser screen 60 are displayed on the same screen, the EPG 40 in which the number of broadcasting stations is reduced compared to a normal EPG (see FIG. 2) is displayed.

  The browser screen 60 includes an area (display area 61) for displaying various contents including search results based on the search window 50, an icon bar 62, an address bar 63, a scroll bar 64, and the like. The icon bar 62 includes, for example, a “return icon” for moving to the previous page, a “forward icon” for proceeding to the next page, a “cancel icon” for canceling reading, and a user favorite. A “favorite icon” for displaying a list of web pages, a “history display icon” for displaying the displayed page history, and the like are included. The address bar 63 displays the URL (address) of the currently accessed web page. The scroll bar 64 is a GUI part for moving the display area as necessary. On the browser screen 60, an icon 65 indicating that Internet communication is being performed is displayed at the top of the screen.

  Each web page displayed in the display area 61 is accessed by performing a selection operation and a determination operation with the cursor 66 on the browser screen 60. For example, in FIG. 5, when the item “Nobio-Encyclopedia” is selected with the cursor 66 and a determination operation is performed, the web page of the item is accessed based on the control of the browser 16, and FIG. As shown, the browser screen 60 displays the content of the web page of “Nobio-Encyclopedia”. When a link item is included in the web page, it is possible to access the link page by appropriately performing an operation with the remote controller 20, moving the cursor 66 to the link item, and performing a determination operation.

  Next, it is determined whether there has been a browsing continuation operation (step 307). When browsing the browser screen 60 continuously, the operation by the cursor 66 on the browser screen 60 is repeated (Yes in Step 307). When browsing of the browser screen 60 is ended while browsing the browser screen 60, for example, the end icon 67 included in the browser screen 60 is selected and determined with the cursor 66, and the communication processing with the server 31 is ended. Then, the browser screen 60 is closed. That is, from the screen state in which the display 18 includes the EPG 40 and the browser screen 60 as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the screen is only the EPG 40 as shown in FIG. 2. (No in step 307). Note that the browser screen 60 may be terminated by pressing an end button of the remote controller 20 or the like.

  A case will be described in which the keyword search process based on another program (in the present embodiment, a program other than the program A1) is executed while the browser screen 60 is being browsed. In this case, the selection operation by the cursor 66 on the browser screen 60 is interrupted, and the selection operation and determination operation by the cursor 43 on the EPG 40 as described above, the display processing of the search window 50 (Yes in Step 303), the keyword determination (Step 304 (Yes), search processing (step 305), web page display (step 306), and the like are performed. Note that when the selection operation by the cursor 66 on the browser screen 60 is interrupted, the browser 16 may be left activated or the network 30 may be temporarily disconnected.

  When the EPG display end operation is executed by the remote controller 20 (Yes in Step 302), the EPG 40 disappears from the display 18, and for example, a program based on a broadcast wave is displayed (Step 308). When the EPG display is continued and the keyword search function is repeatedly executed (No in step 302), the above steps 304 to 307 are repeated.

  As described above, the video display control apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment can search and display a web page by a simple operation using the EPG information of a program selected during EPG display. Then, the EPG and the information received from the external server and searched using the program information of the selected program are simultaneously displayed. Therefore, the user can easily obtain desired information by accessing a desired web page. In addition, since the browser can be activated during EPG display and the search process can be executed, a desired search result can be obtained quickly.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of components disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the keyword listed in the candidate list window 52 is input to the input window 51. However, the video display control device 100 includes a character input module (not shown), and any character can be freely selected. The configuration may be such that simple input is performed in the input window.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Control module, 11 ... CPU, 12 ... RAM, 13 ... ROM, 14 ... Remote control receiving module, 15 ... Communication processing module, 16 ... Browser, 17 ... Video / audio decoder, 18 ... Display, 19 ... Speaker, 20 ... Remote controller (remote controller), 21 ... Program guide creation module, 22 ... Screen division module, 23 ... Display control module, 30 ... Network, 31 ... Server, 32 ... Antenna, 40 ... EPG, 41 ... Channel axis, 42 ... Time axis , 43 ... Cursor, 44 to 47 ... Guide, 50 ... Search window, 51 ... Input window, 52 ... Candidate list window, 53 ... Decision window, 60 ... Browser screen, 61 ... Display area, 62 ... Icon bar, 63 ... Address Bar, 64 ... Scroll bar, 65 ... Icon, 66 ... Cursor, 67 ... guide

Claims (6)

A first receiving module for receiving program information;
An electronic program guide creation module for creating an electronic program guide based on the program information;
A selection module for selecting a program included in the electronic program guide;
A second receiving module for receiving information from the server via the network;
A screen division module for dividing one screen into at least a first screen region and a second screen region;
The electronic program guide is displayed in the first screen area, and information received from the server and related to the program selected by the selection module is displayed in the second screen area. And a display control module that controls the video display control device.   The display control module controls the search window including an input window for inputting information related to the program selected by the selection module to be received from the server on the same screen as the electronic program guide. The video display control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a search window display module that performs the search window display module.   The video display control apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a keyword extraction module that extracts input candidates of the input window from program information of a program selected by the selection module.   4. The video display control according to claim 3, wherein the keyword extraction module automatically extracts program information of the changed program in response to the change of the program selected by the selection module. apparatus.   The display control module controls to display a result searched by the external server in the second screen area in accordance with a keyword input to the search window. 5. The video display control device according to any one of 4. Receiving program information;
Creating an electronic program guide based on the program information;
Receiving information from a server over a network;
Dividing one screen into at least a first screen region and a second screen region;
Displaying the electronic program guide in the first screen area and displaying information from the server and related to the program of the selected program in the second screen area. And a video display control method.

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