CONTENTS RECEIVING APPARATUS

• US 20090244087A1
• Filed: 12/03/2008
• Published: 10/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Mobile Communications Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: OKANO, Michiaki
• Granted Patent: US 8,339,408 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/589
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0272 for a projector or beamer module assembly constructional features of projectors per se G03B21/00; constructional details of projectors using electronic spatial light modulators per se H04N9/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72436 for text messaging, e.g. short messaging services [SMS] or e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72445 for supporting Internet browser applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

According to one embodiment of the invention, a contents receiving apparatus includes: a communication unit configured to receive contents data; a display unit configured to display an image included in the contents data; and a controller configured to instruct the communication unit to receive contents data, and to control the display unit to display the image, wherein, when estimated time of completion for receiving the contents data is longer than a given time, the controller controls the display unit to change a luminance level of the display unit from a first luminance level to a second luminance level that is lower than the first luminance level or not to display the contents, and wherein, when the estimated time is equal to or shorter than the given time, the controller controls the display unit to maintain the luminance level at the first luminance level.

Claims

1. A contents receiving apparatus comprising:

a communication unit configured to receive contents data;

a display unit configured to display an image included in the contents data; and

a controller configured to instruct the communication unit to receive contents data, and to control the display unit to display the image,

wherein, when estimated time of completion for receiving the contents data is longer than a given time, the controller controls the display unit to change a luminance level of the display unit from a first luminance level to a second luminance level that is lower than the first luminance level or not to display the contents, and

wherein, when the estimated time is equal to or shorter than the given time, the controller controls the display unit to maintain the luminance level at the first luminance level.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, when the communication unit receives the contents data, the controller controls the display unit to display an image indicating that the communication unit is receiving the contents data.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein, when the communication unit receives the contents data, the controller controls the image output unit to output an image indicating that the communication unit is receiving the contents data.

10. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein, when a part of the contents data is received by the communication unit, the controller calculate a reception speed from a data size of the part of the contents data and a time required to receive the part of the contents data, and

wherein the controller predicts a time required to receive the contents data based on the reception speed and size of the contents data.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10,

wherein, when the contents is reproduced by streaming, the estimated time is a time for receiving a certain amount of the contents data to start streaming.

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

a storage unit that stores a plurality of communication rates associated with error rates on a communication path and communication methods on the communication path,

wherein the communication unit receives the contents data by one of the communication methods, and

wherein, when the communication unit receives a part of the contents data by the one of the transmission methods, the controller configured;

to calculate the reception speed of the one of the communication method,

to acquire one of the error rates stored in the storage unit corresponding to the reception speed,

to acquire reception speeds corresponding to communication methods,

to calculate the time required to receive the contents data in the respective communication method from the reception speeds and the size of the contents data,

to select one of the communication methods based on the calculated times, and

to instruct the communication unit to receive the contents by the selected communication method.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12,

wherein the controller selects a communication method in which the predicted time required to receive is shortest.

14. The apparatus according to claim 12,

wherein the controller selects a communication method in which power consumption of the communication unit to receive the contents is lowest.

15. The apparatus according claim 1,

wherein the communication unit is configured to receive the contents via one of a plurality of communication paths,

wherein the controller selects one of the communication paths in which a current required by the communication unit has a current value equal to or less than a given current value, and instructs the communication unit to receive the contents via the selected communication path.

3. A contents receiving apparatus comprising:

a communication unit configured to receive contents data;

an image output unit configured to output an image included in the contents data; and

a controller configured to instruct the communication unit to receive contents data, and to control the image output unit to output the image,

wherein, when estimated time of completion for receiving the contents data is longer than a given time, the controller controls the image output unit to change a luminance level of the image from a first luminance level to a second luminance level that is lower than the first luminance level or not to output the image, and

wherein, when the estimated time is equal to or shorter than the given time, the controller controls the image output unit to maintain the luminance level at the first luminance level.

5. A contents receiving apparatus comprising:

a communication unit configured to receive contents data;

a display unit configured to display an image included in the contents data;

an image output unit configured to output the image; and

a controller configured to instruct the communication unit to receive contents data, to control the image output unit to output the image, and to control the display unit to display the image,

wherein, when estimated time or completion for receiving the contents data is longer than a given time, the controller controls the image output unit to change a luminance level of the image from a first luminance level to a second luminance level that is lower than the first luminance level or not to output the image, and controls the display unit to display the image, and

wherein, when the estimated time is equal to or shorter than the given time, the controller controls the image output unit to maintain the luminance level at the first luminance level, and controls the display unit to display the image.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein, when the communication unit receives the contents data, the controller controls the image output unit to output a notification image indicating that the communication unit is receiving the contents data, and controls the display unit to display the notification image.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein, when the estimated time is longer than the given time while a mode of the controller allows the display unit to display the image and allows the image output unit to output the same image, the controller controls the image output unit to change the luminance level of the image from the first luminance level to the second luminance level or not to output the image, and controls the display unit to display the image, and

wherein, when the estimated time is longer than the given time while the mode of the controller allows the display unit to display the image and allows the image output unit to output a different image that is different from the image, the controller controls the image output unit to maintain the luminance level at the first luminance level and controls the display unit not to display the image, or controls the display unit to display the image.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7,

wherein, when the communication unit receives the contents data, the controller controls the display unit to display a notification image indicating that the communication unit is receiving the contents data.

9. The apparatus according to claim 5,

wherein a screen of the display unit is provided in a main body, and the image output unit is a projector.