Digital TV and method for switching channel automatically

• US 20040114052A1
• Filed: 04/01/2003
• Published: 06/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Sin, Su Hyun
• Granted Patent: US 7,227,583 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/570
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4332 by placing content in organized collections, e.g. local EPG data repository interfaces, Database management systems or updating for information retrieval G06F16/23; details of retrieval of video data and associated meta data in video database G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/50 Tuning indicators; Automatic tuning control

Abstract

A digital TV and a method of switching a channel automatically thereof provides a viewer with advance notice of an automatic channel switch using linkage descriptor information on HD broadcasting. Providing the viewer with notice of the switched channel reduces viewer confusion. The method includes the steps of determining whether a linkage descriptor is included in additional information regarding a broadcast program whether the broadcast program regardless of whether the broadcast program is selected by a viewer, checking the remaining time of the broadcast program if the linkage descriptor is included in the additional information, displaying a channel switch notice message on a screen, determining whether or not the broadcast program has ended, switching a channel of the broadcast program to a designated channel when the broadcast program ends, and displaying a channel switch confirmation message on the screen.

Claims

1. A digital TV comprising:

a demultiplexing unit receiving a broadcast signal of a selected channel to output video information, audio information, and additional information;

a video/audio processing unit receiving the video information and the audio information to output a video signal and an audio signal to a display unit and a speaker, respectively;

a database storing the additional information;

a memory storing message display video information; and

a control unit outputting the message display video information stored in the memory to the video/audio processing unit if information providing notice of a channel switch is inputted to the database, the control unit switching the selected channel to another channel if a broadcast of the selected channel ends or is interrupted.

2. The digital TV of claim 1, wherein the control unit outputs the message display video information to the video/audio processing unit to display a channel switch notice message on the display unit prior to the channel switch.

3. The digital TV of claim 1, wherein the control unit outputs the message display video information to the video/audio processing unit to display a channel switch confirmation message on the display unit after the channel switch has occurred.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the performing step includes:

locating a different channel corresponding to the title of the program determined; and

switching to the located channel.

4. A digital TV comprising:

a demultiplexing unit receiving a broadcast signal of a channel selected by a viewer to output video information, audio information, and additional information;

a video/audio decoder decoding the video information and the audio information;

a video/audio processing unit receiving an output signal of the video/audio decoder to output video and audio signals to implement a video and audio, respectively;

a data parsing unit parsing the additional information outputted from the demultiplexing unit;

a database storing the additional information outputted from the data parsing unit;

a memory storing a channel switch notice message displaying video information and storing a channel switch confirmation message displaying video information; and

a control unit outputting the channel switch notice message displaying video information and the channel switch confirmation message displaying video information to the video/audio processing unit at set-up times respectively if a linkage descriptor is present in the additional information stored in the database, the control unit switching the channel selected by the viewer to a designated channel when an HD broadcast begins.

5. The digital TV of claim 4, wherein the control unit outputs the channel switch notice message displaying video information to the video/audio processing unit before the HD broadcast begins.

6. The digital TV of claim 4, wherein the control unit outputs the channel switch confirmation message displaying video information to the video/audio processing unit after the HD broadcast begins.

7. The digital TV of claim 4, wherein the control unit switches the channel selected by the viewer to the channel designated by the linkage descriptor when the HD broadcast begins.

8. The digital TV of claim 4, wherein the control unit switches the channel selected by the viewer to the channel of the HD broadcast when the HD broadcast begins.

9. A method of switching a channel of a display device, comprising:

determining whether or not channel switch information is included in a currently viewed channel;

notifying a user of a pending channel switch before the channel switch occurs when the determining determines that channel switch information is included in the currently viewed channel; and

performing a channel switch.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising notifying the user that the channel switch has occurred after the channel switch is performed.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining a type of program and a title of a program being broadcasted on the currently viewed channel.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the performing step includes:

locating a different channel corresponding to the type of program determined; and

switching to the located channel.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising notifying the user that the channel switch has occurred after the channel switch is performed.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein information notifying of a pending channel switch is a linkage descriptor.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the channel is switched to the channel designated by the information notifying of the pending channel switch when the broadcast of the watched channel ends or is interrupted.

17. A display device for switching channels, comprising:

a control unit determining whether or not channel switch information is included in a currently viewed channel, and generating notification signals if the channel switch information is included in the currently viewed channel; and

a display unit notifying a user of a channel switch before the channel switch occurs based on the notification signals.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to notify the user that the channel switch has occurred after the channel switch is performed.

19. The device of claim 17, wherein the control unit determines a type of program or a title of a program on the currently viewed channel.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein the control unit locates a different channel corresponding to the type of program determined, and controls switching to the located channel.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein the control unit locates a different channel corresponding to the title of program determined, and controls switching to the located channel.

22. A method of switching a channel of a digital TV automatically, comprising:

(a) determining whether or not information noticing a channel switch is included in additional information about a broadcast program selected by a viewer;

(b) checking a remaining time of the broadcast program if the information noticing a channel switch is included in the additional information;

(c) displaying a channel switch notice message on a screen;

(d) determining whether or not the broadcast program has ended;

(e) switching a channel of the broadcast program to a designated channel when the broadcast program ends; and

(f) displaying a channel switch confirmation message on the screen.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the remaining time of the broadcast program is found by a difference between a current time and an end time of the broadcast program attained from the additional information.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein, in the step of displaying the channel switch notice message on the screen, the channel switch notice message is displayed on the screen if the remaining time of the broadcast time is less than or equal to five minutes.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein, in the step of determining whether the broadcast program has ended, it is determined that the broadcast program has ended if a stop flag is “

1”

.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein, in the step of determining whether the broadcast program has ended, it is determined that the broadcast program has ended if a service description table (SDT) is at a “

not running”

state.

27. The method of claim 22, wherein information noticing a channel switch is a linkage descriptor, and a channel of the broadcast program is switched to a channel designated by the linkage descriptor.

28. The method of claim 22, wherein, when the broadcast program ends and an HD broadcast begins, a channel of the broadcast program is switched to a channel of the HD broadcast.

29. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

determining whether an HD broadcast program is broadcasted on another channel after the channel switch confirmation message is displayed;

displaying a message on the screen asking whether a channel of the broadcast program is switched to the channel of the HD broadcast program, if the HD broadcast program is being broadcasted; and

switching the channel of the broadcast program to either the channel of the HD broadcast program or the designated channel according to a response of the viewer to the message.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

displaying a program menu or switching to a channel displaying program information if a HD program is not selected by the viewer;

selecting a channel from the program menu; and

switching to the selected channel.