Information playback apparatus and electronic pop advertising apparatus

• US 20010036353A1
• Filed: 03/16/2001
• Published: 11/01/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Ochiai, Yoshio, Shinagawa, Yasufumi, Saito, Koni
• Granted Patent: US 7,099,568 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/46
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0268 at point-of-sale [POS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4184 providing storage capabilities, e.g. memory stick
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42201 biosensors, e.g. heat sensor for presence detection, EEG sensors or any limb activity sensors worn by the user input arrangements for interaction with the human body based on nervous system activity detection G06F3/015
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/907 using static stores, e.g. storage tubes or semiconductor memories H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

An information playback apparatus includes a plate-shaped storage memory which is removably attached to a main unit and in which particular compressed moving image file data is electrically stored, an MPEG decoder disposed in the main unit, for reading the compressed moving image file data and decompressing it, an NTSC encoder disposed in the main unit, for converting playback image data obtained by decompressing the moving image file data into image data in a predetermined output format, an LCD disposed on the main unit or in the outside of the main unit, for displaying the image data in a predetermined display area, and a microcomputer for repeatedly playing back the image data in predetermined units of the compressed moving image file data. An electronic POP advertising apparatus includes a sensor unit including a sensor for detecting a person and also includes an electronic advertising unit capable of presenting a predetermined POP advertisement in response to detection by the sensor unit. The electronic advertising unit includes means for storing a plurality of POP advertisements, means for selecting a particular POP advertisement of the POP advertisements stored, and means for outputting the particular POP advertisement in response to a detection signal output from the sensor unit. The electronic POP advertising apparatus is formed to have high reliability and a small size, and is capable of presenting a properly selected POP advertisement in an effective manner in response to detection of a person present near a location where an article is placed.

Claims

1. An information playback apparatus comprising:

a plate-shaped storage medium which is removably attached to a main unit and in which particular compressed moving image file data is electrically stored;

decompressing means disposed in said main unit, for reading said compressed moving image file data and decompressing it;

conversion means disposed in said main unit, for converting playback image data obtained by decompressing said moving image file data into image data in a predetermined output format;

displaying means disposed on said main unit or in the outside of said main unit, for displaying said image data in said predetermined format in a predetermined display area; and

controlling means for repeatedly playing back said image data in predetermined units of said compressed moving image file data.

2. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, wherein said plate-shaped storage medium is a nonvolatile memory.

3. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, wherein said plate-shaped storage medium stores a control program for controlling the operation of said main unit so that the control program installed in said main unit may be updated.

4. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 3

, wherein said main unit displays an arbitrary operation status on said displaying means by executing said control program.

5. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 4

, wherein the displaying of said operation status is performed by superimposing particular character data upon image data.

6. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 3

, wherein said main unit executes a control command which is not originally included in said main unit by executing said control program.

7. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising setting means for arbitrarily setting, in advance, the order in which a plurality of image data are played back, wherein said plurality of image data are played back in said order.

8. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising timer setting means for arbitrarily setting times at which the playing back of the image data is started and ended, wherein said image data is played back in a period defined by said starting and ending times.

9. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising temporarily storing means for temporarily storing the compressed moving image file data, wherein said compressed moving image data is read from said plate-shaped storage medium in real time and temporarily stored in said temporarily storing means so that said image data is played back in real time.

10. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, further comprising a speaker disposed on said main unit or in the outside thereof, for reproducing audio data, wherein

said plate-shaped storage medium electrically stores compressed audio file data;

said decompressing means reads said compressed audio file data and performs decompression upon it; and

said conversion means converts said decompressed audio data into audio data in a predetermined format.

11. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, wherein a plurality of said plate-shaped storage media are removably attached to said main unit, and compressed image file data stored in said plurality of plate-shaped storage media are sequentially read one by one thereby continuously playing back the image data.

12. An information processing apparatus according to

claim 1

, wherein:

said compressed image file data includes a describing area in which a plate-shaped storage medium identification code is described;

said control means includes storage means in which a main unit identification code is stored; and

said compressed moving image file data is read from said plate-shaped storage medium and played back only when said plate-shaped storage medium identification code and said main unit identification code are consistent with each other.

13. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 12

, wherein said main unit identification code is rewritable.

14. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 13

, wherein the rewriting of said main unit identification code is performed using the plate-shaped storage medium attached to the main unit.

15. An information playback apparatus according to

claim 13

, wherein the rewriting of said main unit identification code is performed using a switch coupled with said storage means in which the main unit identification code is stored.

16. An electronic POP advertising apparatus comprising a sensor unit including a sensor for detecting a person;

and an electronic advertising unit capable of presenting a predetermined POP advertisement in response to detection by said sensor unit, wherein

said electronic advertising unit includes;

means for storing a plurality of POP advertisements;

means for selecting a particular POP advertisement of said POP advertisements stored; and

means for outputting said particular POP advertisement in response to a detection signal output from said sensor unit.

17. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said POP advertisement is presented by displaying an image or by outputting a voice or sound.

18. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said means for outputting the POP advertisement starts a POP advertisement outputting operation when said sensor detects a person and ends said operation after presenting a unit of POP advertisement described in a file a predetermined arbitrary number of times.

19. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said sensor unit transmits the signal according to the same scheme as that employed by a remote controller for controlling said electronic advertising unit.

20. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said sensor unit is formed separately from said electronic advertising unit.

21. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein a plurality of said sensor units are formed separately from said electronic advertising unit and said plurality of sensor units are disposed at different locations, and wherein the content of the POP advertisement presented by said electronic advertising unit is changed depending upon which of said plurality of sensor units a person is detected by.

22. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein the content of the POP advertisement presented by said electronic advertising unit is changed such that the audio output of the POP advertisement is changed depending upon the location where the sensor unit is disposed.

23. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein the content of the POP advertisement presented by said electronic advertising unit is changed depending upon a period of time in which a person is detected by said sensor unit.

24. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said sensor is a reflective-type infrared sensor, a pyroelectric-type infrared sensor, a mechanical switch, or a photosensor, or a combination of two or more of these sensors.

25. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein the displaying screen of said electronic advertising unit is formed of a liquid crystal display screen, and a panel case for protecting said liquid crystal display screen from a pressing force is disposed on the front side of said liquid crystal display screen.

26. An electronic POP advertising apparatus according to

claim 16

, wherein said electronic advertising unit is coupled with a fixing member for fixing said electronic advertising unit, said fixing member including a removal protection part for preventing a power cable terminal and a signal cable terminal from being removed from said electronic advertising unit.