Electronic cinema system, distribution apparatus, and showing apparatus

• US 20020038460A1
• Filed: 09/21/2001
• Published: 03/28/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kimoto, Takayuki
• Application Number:
  US09/956,821
• Publication Number:
  US 20020038460A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/109
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41415 involving a public display, viewable by several users in a public space outside their home, e.g. movie theatre, information kiosk
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43072 of multiple content streams on the same device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/631 Multimode Transmission, e.g. transmitting basic layers and enhancement layers of the content over different transmission paths or transmitting with different error corrections, different keys or with different transmission protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/162 Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

This invention relates to an electronic cinema system that electronically delivers movie software or distributes its recording medium to show the movie, and has for its object to provide an electronic cinema system, a distribution apparatus and a showing apparatus, which maintain the security of the whole system. Video is electronically delivered or a recording medium which contains the video is distributed to theaters, further captions and audio are transmitted using an internet protocol, and the video and the audio is synchronously played back in each theater as well as the video and the captions are synchronously played back, composed and shown.

Claims

1. An electronic cinema system which electronically delivers video of movie software or distributes a recording medium that contains the video, to show the movie, comprising:

a distribution apparatus for transmitting captions of the movie software to a theater using an internet protocol; and

a showing apparatus for composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video, and showing the composed video and caption.

2. The electronic cinema system of claim 1 wherein

the distribution apparatus includes:

a caption storage means for storing caption information corresponding to the video;

a reading means for reading the caption information from the caption storage means;

a copy protection device for subjecting the video to a copy protection process;

a key management device for managing a key for releasing the copy protection process; and

a transmission means for transmitting the key and the caption information using the internet protocol.

3. The electronic cinema system of claim 1 wherein

the showing apparatus includes:

a theater control device for composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video, and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a projector for projecting the data outputted from the theater control device.

4. The electronic cinema system of claim 3 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video;

a storage means for storing the caption information, and outputting a caption corresponding to the video selected by the selection means; and

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video selected by the selection means and the caption outputted from the storage means to compose the video and the caption, and outputting the composed video and caption.

5. The electronic cinema system of claim 3 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video, and outputting the selected video; and

a first storage means for storing the caption information, and outputting a caption corresponding to the video selected by the selection means, and

the projector includes;

a second storage means for storing the caption outputted from the first storage means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video outputted from the selection means and the caption stored in the second storage means, and composing the video and the caption; and

a projection means for projecting the composed video and caption.

6. An electronic cinema system which electronically delivers video of movie software or distributes a recording medium that contains the video, to show the movie, comprising:

a distribution apparatus for transmitting captions and audio of the movie software to a theater using an internet protocol; and

a showing apparatus for synchronously playing back the video and audio corresponding to the video, and composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video to show the movie.

7. The electronic cinema system of claim 6 wherein

the distribution apparatus includes:

a caption storage means for storing caption and audio information corresponding to the video;

a reading means for reading the caption and audio information from the caption storage means;

a copy protection device for subjecting the video to a copy protection process;

a key management device for managing a key for releasing the copy protection process; and

a transmission means for transmitting the key and the caption and audio information using the internet protocol.

8. The electronic cinema system of claim 6 wherein

the showing apparatus includes:

a theater control device for synchronously playing back the video and audio corresponding to the video as well as composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video, and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a projector for projecting the data outputted from the theater control device.

9. The electronic cinema system of claim 8 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video;

a storage means for storing the caption and audio information, and outputting a caption and audio corresponding to the video selected by the selection means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video selected by the selection means and the caption outputted from the storage means to compose the video and the caption, and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a synchronous playback means for playing back the audio outputted from the storage means in synchronization with the video selected by the selection means.

10. The electronic cinema system of claim 8 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video, and outputting the selected video;

a first storage means for storing the caption and audio information, and outputting a caption and audio corresponding to the video selected by the selection means; and

a synchronous playback means for playing back the audio outputted form the first storage means in synchronization with the video selected by the selection means, and

the projector includes;

a second storage means for storing the caption outputted from the first storage means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video outputted from the selection means and the caption stored in the second storage means, and composing the video and the caption; and

a projection means for projecting the composed video and caption.

11. A distribution apparatus which electronically delivers video of movie software or distributes a recording medium that contains the video, comprising:

a caption storage means for storing caption information corresponding to the video;

a reading means for reading the caption information from the caption storage means;

a copy protection device for subjecting the video to a copy protection process;

a key management device for managing a key for releasing the copy protection process; and

a transmission means for transmitting the key and the caption information using an internet protocol.

14. The showing apparatus of claim 13 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video;

a storage means for storing the caption information, and outputting a caption corresponding to the video selected by the selection means; and

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video selected by the selection means and the caption outputted from the storage means to compose the video and the caption, and outputting the composed video and caption.

15. The showing apparatus of claim 13 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video, and outputting the selected video; and

a first storage means for storing the caption information, and outputting a caption corresponding to the video selected by the selection means, and

the projector includes;

a second storage means for storing the caption outputted from the first storage means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video outputted from the selection means and the caption stored in the second storage means, and composing the video and the caption; and

a projection means for projecting the composed video and caption.

17. The showing apparatus of claim 16 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video;

a storage means for storing information of the captions and the audio, and outputting a caption and audio corresponding to the video selected by the selection means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video selected by the selection means and the caption outputted from the storage means to compose the video and the caption, and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a synchronous playback means for playing back the audio outputted from the storage means in synchronization with the video selected by the selection means.

18. The showing apparatus of claim 16 wherein

the theater control device includes:

a selection means for selecting video to be shown among the received video, and outputting the selected video;

a first storage means for storing information of the captions and the audio, and outputting a caption and audio corresponding to the video selected by the selection means; and

a synchronous playback means for playing back the audio outputted from the first storage means in synchronization with the video selected by the selection means, and

the projector includes;

a second storage means for storing the caption outputted from the first storage means;

a composition means for synchronously playing back the video outputted from the selection means and the caption stored in the second storage means, and composing the video and the caption; and

a projection means for projecting the composed video and caption.

12. A distribution apparatus which electronically delivers video of movie software or distributes a recording medium that contains the video, comprising:

a caption storage means for storing caption and audio information corresponding to the video;

a reading means for reading the caption and audio information from the caption storage means;

a copy protection device for subjecting the video to a copy protection process;

a key management device for managing a key for releasing the copy protection process; and

a transmission means for transmitting the key and the caption and audio information using an internet protocol.

13. A showing apparatus which separately receives video and captions of movie software, and shows the movie, comprising:

a theater control device for composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video, and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a projector for projecting the data outputted from the theater control device.

16. A showing apparatus which separately receives video, captions and audio of movie software, and shows the movie, comprising:

a theater control device for synchronously playing back the video and audio corresponding to the video as well as composing the video and a caption corresponding to the video and outputting the composed video and caption; and

a projector for projecting the data outputted from the theater control device.