Recording apparatus and recording reservation processing method

• US 20060153523A1
• Filed: 09/01/2004
• Published: 07/13/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kimura, Hitoshi, Ishida, Masaki
• Granted Patent: US 7,797,716 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/295
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4583 Automatically resolving scheduling conflicts, e.g. when a recording by reservation has been programmed for two programs in the same time slot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• 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 5/782 on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

A recording apparatus is disclosed which includes first through n-th recording means for recording input broadcast contents to a recording medium. When a user designates a reservation of a broadcast content recording, the apparatus automatically selects one of the recording means so as to make the recording reservation to the selected recording means. If any such recording means cannot be selected automatically, i.e., if recording reservations have already been made to all recording means for a time slot corresponding to the reservation desired to be made anew, then the user is asked to select particular recording means for the reservation. A recording reservation made to one recording means may be switched automatically to another recording means as needed. That is, any recording reservation after being made may be switched from one recording means to another before actual execution of the recording, in order to reflect the status of other recording reservations that have been made since. These arrangements enhance the user'"'"'s ease of operation and help to build an advantageous setup for recording reservation management.

Claims

1. A recording apparatus comprising:

first through n-th recording means for recording input broadcast contents to a recording medium;

user interfacing means for inputting an instruction of a user to reserve a recording of a broadcast content; and

reservation managing means which manages reservations of broadcast content recordings with respect to each of said first through n-th recording means and which, when making a reservation of a broadcast content recording in accordance with the recording reservation instruction input through said user interfacing means, selects automatically one of the first through n-th recording means available for a time slot corresponding to the recording reservation, in order to make said recording reservation to the selected recording means.

2. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, if said reservation managing means cannot automatically select any one of the first through n-th recording means because none of said recording means is available for the time slot corresponding to said recording reservation to be made in accordance with said recording reservation instruction input through said user interfacing means, then said user interfacing means performs a selection requesting process for prompting said user to select one of said recording means to which to make said recording reservation.

3. The recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, when performing said selection requesting process, said user interfacing means also carries out a process for presenting the time slot applicable to the broadcast content to be reserved for unattended recording, and any previously made recording reservation overlapping either partially or totally with said time slot.

4. The recording apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, if said user selects one of said recording means to which to make said recording reservation in response to said selection requesting process performed by said user interfacing means, then said reservation managing means makes said recording reservation to the user-selected recording means.

5. The recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said reservation managing means performs a switching process for automatically switching a recording reservation made to any one of said recording means to another recording means.

6. The recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein, if a recording reservation made to a particular one of said first through n-th recording means is canceled, then said reservation managing means switches another recording reservation made to another recording means to that particular recording means.

7. A recording reservation processing method for use with a recording apparatus having first through n-th recording means for recording input broadcast contents to a recording medium, said recording reservation processing method comprising the steps of:

inputting an instruction to reserve a broadcast content recording based on operations by a user;

automatically selecting from said first through n-th recording means recording means available for a time slot corresponding to the recording reservation designated by said instruction input in the inputting step; and

making said recording reservation to the recording means selected automatically in the automatically selecting step, said recording reservation being designated by said instruction input in the inputting step.

8. The recording reservation processing method according to claim 7, further comprising the steps of:

if the automatically selecting step fails to select from said first through n-th recording means any recording means available for the time slot corresponding to said recording reservation designated by said instruction input in the inputting step, then requesting said user to select recording means to which said recording reservation is to be made; and

if said user selects in the selection requesting step the recording means to which to make said recording reservation, then making said recording reservation a second time to the user-selected recording means.

9. The recording reservation processing method according to claim 8, wherein the selection requesting step further comprises carrying out a process for presenting the time slot applicable to the broadcast content to be reserved for unattended recording, and any previously made recording reservation overlapping either partially or totally with said time slot.

10. A recording reservation processing method for use with a recording apparatus having first through n-th recording means for recording input broadcast contents to a recording medium, said recording reservation processing method comprising the steps of:

making a reservation of a broadcast content recording to any one of said first through n-th recording means; and

switching automatically a recording reservation made to any one of said recording means to another recording means.

11. The recording reservation processing method according to claim 10, wherein, if a recording reservation made to a particular one of said first through n-th recording means is canceled, then the switching step switches automatically another recording reservation made to another recording means to that particular recording means.