Broadcasting system and its broadcasting transmission apparatus and reception terminal apparatus

• US 20030179110A1
• Filed: 03/19/2003
• Published: 09/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Kato, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 6,943,702 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/988
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/092 Coding or decoding of the information
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 1/093 Data selection, e.g. prioritizing information, managing message queues, selecting the information to be output
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/62 for transportation systems, e.g. in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving

Abstract

A broadcasting center multiplexes contents obtained by adding information indicative of presentation conditions including a “location”, a “moving direction”, and the “period of validity of data” to stream data. A broadcasting wave dispatching apparatus transmits the contents to the entire information provided area through a broadcasting wave. A reception terminal apparatus mounted in a vehicle receives the broadcasting wave distributed by the broadcasting station while the vehicle is passing through the information provided area. The reception terminal apparatus then separates the multiplexed contents from the received signal for storage. It also obtains status information including the location of the vehicle, the current time, and the moving direction of the vehicle, from information provided by a vehicle location measuring apparatus. The reception terminal apparatus then sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information, added to the stored contents. It then decodes and reproduces matching contents.

Claims

1. A broadcasting system comprising:

a broadcasting transmission apparatus which generates a plurality of broadcasting signal of local information added presentation condition information to information, multiplexes and modulates the broadcasting signal, and transmits the modulated signal using a broadcasting wave; and

a reception terminal apparatus which receives the broadcasting wave and demodulates the broadcasting signal, separates the local information from the broadcasting signal, stores the local information, recognizes the presentation condition information added to the local information, obtains status information for each of the conditions, and sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information to read and reproduce local information that meets the conditions.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity, and

the reception terminal apparatus obtains status information on the current location information or current location code of a vehicle, the current time of day, and the moving direction, and sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information to sort, read, and output local information which is included in the stored information and which meets the conditions.

3. A broadcasting transmission apparatus included in the system according to claim 1, which comprises:

signal generating means for adding presentation condition information to local information to generate a broadcasting signal; and

transmission means for multiplexing and modulating the broadcasting signal generated by the signal generating means and transmitting the modulated signal using a broadcasting wave.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity.

5. A reception terminal apparatus included in the system according to claim 1, which comprises:

receiving and demodulating means for receiving the broadcasting wave, separating and demodulating the broadcasting signal;

separating means for separating the local information from the output signal from the receiving and demodulating means;

storage means for storing each piece of the local information separated by the separating means;

status information obtaining means for obtaining status information corresponding to presentation condition information added to each piece of the local information stored in the storage means; and

information sorting means for sequentially comparing and collating the status information obtained by the status information obtaining means with the presentation condition information to sort matching local information from the information stored in the storage means.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein when the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity, the status information obtaining means obtains status information on the current location information or current location code, the current time, and the moving direction.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein when the presentation condition information includes location information, the information sorting means identifies the range of presentation on the basis of a location specified by the location information to detect that the current location of the vehicle falls within this particular range to determine that one of the conditions is met or the presentation location code is met the current location code.

8. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein when the presentation condition information includes the range of presentation or the presentation location code is met the current location code, the information sorting means detects that the current location of the vehicle falls within the range of presentation to determine that one of the conditions is met.

9. The apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

information sort clearing means for clearing information sorting based on the presentation condition information and reading and outputting all local information.

10. The apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

condition changing means for causing a receiver to change a select condition of the presentation condition information.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the transmission means multiplexes the broadcasting signal and a broadcasting signal for digital broadcasting and then modulates and transmits the multiplexed signal.

12. A local information providing method comprising:

generating a plurality of broadcasting signal of local information added presentation condition information to information and transmitting the broadcasting signal using a digital broadcasting wave; and

receiving the broadcasting wave, storing the local information, recognizing the presentation condition information added to the local information, obtaining status information for each of the conditions, comparing the status information with the presentation condition information, reading and reproducing local information that meets the conditions.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity, and

in receiving side, the obtaining status information on the current location information or current location code of a vehicle, the current time of day, and the moving direction, and sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information to sort, read, and output local information which is included in the stored information and which meets the conditions.

14. A satellite broadcasting system comprising:

a broadcasting transmission apparatus arranged at a ground station to generate a plurality of broadcasting signal of local information added presentation condition information to information, multiplex the resultant information and general program information to generate a broadcasting signal, modulate the generated broadcasting signal, and transmit the modulated signal using a broadcasting wave; and

a satellite relay apparatus mounted in a satellite to receive the broadcasting wave transmitted by the broadcasting transmission apparatus and transmit the received broadcasting wave to a ground service area; and

a reception terminal apparatus which receives, in the service area, the broadcasting wave transmitted by the satellite relay apparatus and demodulates the broadcasting signal, separates the broadcasting signal into general program information and local information, stores the local information, recognizes the presentation condition information added to the local information, obtains status information for each of the conditions, sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information, and reads local information that meets the conditions.

15. The system according to claim 14, further comprising:

a gap filler apparatus which receives, in the service area, a broadcasting wave retransmitted by the satellite relay apparatus and retransmits the broadcasting wave to an arbitrary area.

16. The system according to claim 14, wherein the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity, and

the reception terminal apparatus obtains status information on the current location of a vehicle, the current time of day, and the moving direction, and sequentially compares the status information with the presentation condition information to sort, read, and output local information which is included in the stored information and which meets the conditions.

17. A broadcasting transmission apparatus included in the system according to claim 14, which comprises:

signal generating means for generating a plurality of broadcasting signal of local information added presentation condition information to information, multiplexing the resultant information and general program information to generate a broadcasting signal; and

transmission means for modulating the broadcasting signal generated by the signal generating means and transmitting the modulated signal using a broadcasting wave.

18. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity.

19. A reception terminal apparatus included in the system according to claim 14, which comprises:

receiving and demodulating means for receiving the broadcasting wave and demodulating the broadcasting signal;

separating means for separating the output signal from the receiving and demodulating means into the general program information and local information;

storage means for storing the local information separated by the separating means;

status information obtaining means for obtaining status information corresponding to presentation condition information added to each piece of the local information stored in the storage means;

information sorting means for sequentially comparing and collating the status information obtained by the status information obtaining means with the presentation condition information to sort matching local information from the information stored in the storage means; and

information reproducing means for selectively reproducing the general program information and the local information sorted by the information sorting means.

20. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein when the presentation condition information includes presentation location information or presentation location code, a moving direction, and a period of validity, the status information obtaining means obtains status information on the current location of a vehicle, the current time of day, and the moving direction.

21. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein when the presentation condition information includes location information, the information sorting means identifies the range of presentation on the basis of a location specified by the location information to detect that the current location of the vehicle falls within this particular range to determine that one of the conditions is met or the presentation location code is met the current location code.

22. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein when the presentation condition information includes the range of presentation or the presentation location code is met the current location code, the information sorting means detects that the current location of the vehicle falls within the range of presentation to determine that one of the conditions is met.

23. The apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising:

information sort clearing means for clearing information sorting based on the presentation condition information and reading and outputting all local information.

24. The apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising:

condition changing means for causing a receiver to change a select condition of the presentation condition information.

25. The apparatus according to claim 19, wherein in addition to the broadcasting wave transmitted by the satellite relay apparatus, the receiving and demodulating means receives and demodulates a broadcasting signal transmitted by a gap filler apparatus which receives and retransmits the broadcasting wave transmitted by the satellite relay apparatus.