DEVICE LINKAGE APPARATUS

• US 20090290065A1
• Filed: 12/19/2006
• Published: 11/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Matsuo, Keisuke, Asayama, Sako
• Granted Patent: US 8,310,603 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/553
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43635 HDMI
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/60 for the sound signals

Abstract

A device linkage apparatus (100), which reduces the operating load on a user and causes a television (1) and an amplifier (2) to be appropriately linked, includes: a correspondence table storage unit (414) in which is stored a mode correspondence table (414a) indicating, for each TV-program genre, the audio output mode corresponding to the genre; an attribute obtainment unit (413a) which obtains the genre of a TV-program to be reproduced; a mode identification unit (413b) which identifies, from among the audio output modes indicated in the mode correspondence table (414a), the audio output mode that corresponds to the genre obtained by the attribute obtainment unit (413a); and a linkage execution unit (413c) which causes the operations of a television (1) and an amplifier (2) to be linked accordance to the audio output mode identified by the mode identification unit (413b).

Claims

1. A device linkage apparatus which causes operations of devices used in reproducing a content to be linked with each other, said device linkage apparatus comprising:

a correspondence table storage unit in which a mode correspondence table is stored, the mode correspondence table indicating, for each content attribute, a mode corresponding to the attribute;

an attribute obtainment unit operable to obtain an attribute of a content to be reproduced;

a mode identification unit operable to identify, from among the modes indicated in the mode correspondence table, a mode corresponding to the attribute obtained by said attribute obtainment unit;

a mode acceptance unit operable to accept a mode according to an operation by a user;

a linkage execution unit operable to cause the operations of the devices to be linked according to the mode identified by said mode identification unit and the mode accepted by said mode acceptance unit, and to cause the devices to reproduce the content to be reproduced by transmitting a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)-Consumer Electronics Control (CEC)-based command to the devices; and

a checking unit operable to check;

a power source state set for each of the devices;

a mode in which each of the devices is currently operating; and

a fact that the devices have received the command transmitted by said linkage execution unit,

wherein said linkage execution unit is operable to;

turn ON the power source of a device by transmitting the command to the device, upon judging, based on the check by said checking unit, that the power source of the device is OFF;

prohibit the transmission of the command, upon judging, based on the check by said checking unit, that the respective modes in which the devices are currently operating match the mode identified by said mode identification unit or the mode accepted by said mode acceptance unit; and

transmit the command again to a device, upon judging that said checking unit is unable to check, within a predetermined period, the fact that the device has received the command.

2. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the devices each include a first device and a second device which output audio, and

said linkage execution unit is operable to:

cause operations of the first device and the second device to be linked so that the second device suppresses audio output and the first device outputs audio, when said mode identification unit identifies a first mode; and

cause operations of the first device and the second device to be linked so that the first device suppresses audio output and the second device outputs audio, when said mode identification unit identifies a second mode.

3. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 2,

wherein the first device outputs video and audio of the content, and

said linkage execution unit is operable to:

cause operations of the first device and the second device to be linked so that the second device suppresses audio output and the first device outputs video and audio, when said mode identification unit identifies the first mode; and

cause operations of the first device and the second device to be linked so that the first device suppresses audio output and outputs video and the second device outputs audio, when said mode identification unit identifies the second mode.

4. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 3,

wherein said linkage execution unit is operable to cause the operation of the devices to be linked with each other so as to adjust audio quality of the audio to be outputted by the devices.

5. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 4,

wherein said linkage execution unit is further operable to adjust picture quality of the video to be outputted by the first device, according to the mode identified by said mode identification unit.

7. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said attribute obtainment unit is operable to obtain the attribute of the content to be reproduced, from a TV-program table indicating, for each of contents to be reproduced, the attribute of the content to be reproduced.

8. The device linkage apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the attribute is one of a genre and a channel of a content to be broadcast.

6. (canceled)

9. A device linkage method for causing operations of devices used in reproducing a content to be linked with each other, said device linkage method comprising:

an attribute obtainment step of obtaining an attribute of a content to be reproduced;

a mode identification step of identifying, from among the modes indicated in a mode correspondence table, a mode corresponding to the attribute obtained in said attribute obtainment step;

a mode acceptance step of accepting a mode according to an operation by a user;

a linkage execution step of causing the operations of the devices to be linked according to the mode identified in said mode identification step and the mode accepted in said mode acceptance step, and to cause the devices to reproduce the content to be reproduced, by transmitting a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)-Consumer Electronics Control (CEC)-based command to the devices; and

a checking step of checking;

a power source state set for each of the devices;

a mode in which each of the devices is currently operating; and

that the devices have received the command transmitted in said linkage execution step,

wherein in said linkage execution step;

the power source of a device is turned ON by transmitting the command to the device, upon judging, based on the check in said checking step, that the power source of the device is OFF;

the transmission of the command is prohibited, upon judging, based on the check in said checking step, that the respective modes in which the devices are currently operating match the mode identified in said mode identification step or the mode accepted in said mode acceptance step; and

the command is transmitted again to a device, upon judging that, in said checking step, the fact that the device has received the command cannot be checked within a predetermined period.

10. A program for causing operations of devices used in reproducing a content to be linked with each other, said program causing a computer to execute:

an attribute obtainment step of obtaining an attribute of a content to be reproduced;

a mode identification step of identifying, from among the modes indicated in a mode correspondence table, a mode corresponding to the attribute obtained in said attribute obtainment step;

a mode acceptance step of accepting a mode according to an operation by a user;

a linkage execution step of causing the operations of the devices to be linked according to the mode identified in said mode identification step and the mode accepted in said mode acceptance step, and to cause the devices to reproduce the content to be reproduced, by transmitting a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)-Consumer Electronics Control (CEC)-based command to the devices; and

a checking step of checking;

a power source state set for each of the devices;

a mode in which each of the devices is currently operating; and

that the devices have received the command transmitted in said linkage execution step,

wherein in said linkage execution step;

the power source of a device is turned ON by transmitting the command to the device, upon judging, based on the check in said checking step, that the power source of the device is OFF;

the transmission of the command is prohibited, upon judging, based on the check in said checking step, that the respective modes in which the devices are currently operating match the mode identified in said mode identification step or the mode accepted in said mode acceptance step; and

the command is transmitted again to a device, upon judging that, in said checking step, the fact that the device has received the command cannot be checked within a predetermined period.

11. A semiconductor integrated circuit which causes operations of devices used in reproducing a content to be linked with each other, said device linkage apparatus comprising:

a correspondence table storage unit in which a mode correspondence table is stored, the mode correspondence table indicating, for each content attribute, a mode corresponding to the attribute;

an attribute obtainment unit operable to obtain an attribute of a content to be reproduced;

a mode identification unit operable to identify, from among the modes indicated in the mode correspondence table, a mode corresponding to the attribute obtained by said attribute obtainment unit;

a mode acceptance unit operable to accept a mode according to an operation by a user;

a linkage execution unit operable to cause the operations of the devices to be linked according to the mode identified by said mode identification unit and the mode accepted by said mode acceptance unit, and to cause the devices to reproduce the content to be reproduced, by transmitting a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI)-Consumer Electronics Control (CEC)-based command to the devices; and

a checking unit operable to check;

a power source state set for each of the devices;

a mode in which each of the devices is currently operating; and

a fact that the devices have received the command transmitted by said linkage execution unit,

wherein said linkage execution unit is operable to;

turn ON the power source of a device by transmitting the command to the device, upon judging, based on the check by said checking unit, that the power source of the device is OFF;

prohibit the transmission of the command, upon judging, based on the check by said checking unit, that the respective modes in which the devices are currently operating match the mode identified by said mode identification unit or the mode accepted by said mode acceptance unit; and

transmit the command again to a device, upon judging that said checking unit is unable to check, within a predetermined period, the fact that the device has received the command.