Method for decoding image/sound data contained inteletext data of a digital television signal

• US 5,650,826 A
• Filed: 02/15/1995
• Issued: 07/22/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Thomson Consumer Electronics Sales GmbH
• Original Assignee: Thomson Consumer Electronics Sales GmbH
• Inventors: Eitz, Gerhard
• Primary Examiner(s): Kostak, Victor R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Miller, John W.
• Application Number:
  US08/388,858
• Time in Patent Office: 888 Days
• Field of Search: 348/906, 348/468, 348/460, 348/461, 348/478, 348/482, 348/483, 348/484, 348/485
• US Class Current: 348/468
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4888 for displaying teletext characters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0882 for the transmission of character code signals, e.g. for teletext circuits for the digital non-picture data signal H04N7/035
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0884 for the transmission of additional display-information, e.g. menu for programme or channel selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0887 for the transmission of programme or channel identifying signals

Abstract

A data stream is separated from a television signal during the reception of data transmitted in the television signal. The data associated with a given page are collected. The pages thus assembled are temporarily stored. One or more separated pages with lists are transmitted and processed by the decoder at the receiver. Images and image sequences, if necessary, together with a text page, are displayed and sounds are reproduced using circuitry, such as the image and sound decoders, respectively, that already exist in a receiver compatible with digital signal transmission. A given separate page, referred to as the text-image-sound link table, contains addressing information and corresponding codes for image and/or sound data which are in the data stream. The separate page also contains search words and the text page numbers associated with the search words. When a specifically highlighted search word is selected by the user in a selected text page, a selection process is initialized. In the selection process, the user selected search word and the associated addressing information are obtained in the separate page under the page number of the selected text page. Based on the selected addressing information, the corresponding image and sound data are retrieved and reproduced in accordance with the code.

Claims

1. A method for processing a digitally coded television signal containing non-teletext image data, non- teletext sound data and teletext data, comprising the steps of:

a) separating and assembling said teletext data in pages and storing at least one of said pages in a temporary storage, said pages including at least a first page containing a list of search words, text page numbers associated with said search words, addressing information and selection codes for additional image data and/or sound data contained in said teletext data;

and responsive to user selection of a text page of said pages and user selection of a first search word in said selected text page,

b) selecting from said first page the addressing information and the code in accordance with the selected text page number and the selected search word;

c) retrieving said additional image data and/or sound data in accordance with the selected addressing information; and

d) reproducing the retrieved additional image data and/or sound data in accordance with the selected code such that said additional image data and/or sound data of said teletext data are decoded in a common data decoder where the corresponding non-teletext image and sound data are decoded.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein said retrieved image data are displayed on a screen of a display device together with the text of the selected text page.

3. A television apparatus, comprising:

a source of a digitally coded television signal containing non-teletext image data, non-teletext sound data and teletext data;

a teletext decoder responsive to said television signal for separating and assembling said data in pages and storing at least one of said pages in a temporary storage, said pages including at least a first page containing a list of search words, text page numbers associated with said search words, addressing information and selection codes for additional image and/or sound data contained in said teletext data; and

a processor responsive to a user selection of a first search word in a selected text page for selecting from said first page the addressing information and the selection code, in accordance with the selected text page number and the selected search word, said processor retrieving the corresponding additional image and/or sound data, in accordance with the selected addressing information and reproducing the retrieved data in accordance with the selected code such that said additional image and/or sound data of said teletext data are decoded in a common data decoder where the corresponding non-teletext image and sound data are decoded.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3 further comprising, a character generator and a data selector for selectively applying said retrieved data to said character generator to convert said retrieved data into an R-G-B signal.