Display control method for display having buttons representing selectable voting items in which only marks assigned to selected items continue to be displayed upon selection

• US 5,886,691 A
• Filed: 07/21/1997
• Issued: 03/23/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Furuya, Miki, Takeshima, Kuriko, Kohno, Tetsuya, Yuzawa, Keiji, Kishitaka, Yuriko, Ohkura, Yukiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Flynn, Nathan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Miller, John W.
• Application Number:
  US08/897,835
• Time in Patent Office: 610 Days
• Field of Search: 345/326, 345/327, 348/1, 348/2, 348/6, 348/7, 348/12, 348/13, 348/10, 455/2, 455/3.1, 455/3.2, 455/4.1, 455/4.2, 455/5.1, 455/6.1, 455/6.2
• US Class Current: 715/721
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17354 in an intermediate station common to a plurality of user terminals

Abstract

An interactive display apparatus transmits voting information to a vote receiving center. Prior to voting, all voting items are displayed. A mark or a button is also displayed for each voting item and used for selecting one of a plurality of voting items. After one of the voting items is chosen, only the mark assigned to the selected voting item is displayed, erasing the marks for the other unselected voting items. In this way, the user is capable of recognizing that voting has been completed with ease from a voting screen.

Claims

1. A display control method for displaying a voting screen of a program on a receiving apparatus for receiving a video signal conveying said program, said display control method comprising the steps of:

controlling a display means to display pictures of a plurality of voting items of said program and a plurality of marks each associated with one of a plurality of voting items of said program;

transmitting a selected-item information signal conveying information on a selected one of said voting items upon selection of said selected one of said voting items;

detecting whether said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted; and

displaying only one of said marks associated with said selected voting item and not displaying said marks associated with said voting items other than said selected voting item on said display means if it is detected that said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted.

3. A receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said receiving means receives a voting-item information signal conveying information on each of said voting items of said program and said display control means displays said marks on said display means in accordance with said voting-item information signal conveying information on each of said voting items received by said receiving means.

4. A receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmitting means transmits said selected-item information signal through a telephone line.

5. A receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls said display control means to display a picture on said display means to show that said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted by said transmitting means before controlling said display control means to display only one of said marks associated with said selected voting item on said display means when said transmission-status detecting means detects that said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted by said transmitting means.

6. A receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said display control means controls said display means to display pictures of said marks for said voting items superposed on pictures conveyed by said video signal.

7. A receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls said display control means to display said voting items on said display means as they are without regard to whether one of said voting items was selected when said transmission-status detecting means detects that said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted by said transmitting means.

2. A receiving apparatus comprising:

receiving means for receiving a video signal conveying a program;

display means;

display control means for controlling said display means to display pictures of a plurality of voting items of said program and a plurality of marks each associated with one of the plurality of voting items of said program;

transmitting means for transmitting a selected-item information signal conveying information on a selected one of said voting items when said selected one of said voting items is chosen;

transmission-status detecting means for detecting whether said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted by said transmitting means; and

control means for controlling said display control means to display only one of said marks associated with said selected voting item and to inhibit display of said marks associated with said voting items other than the said selected voting item on said display means if said transmission-status detecting means detects that said selected-item information signal has been successfully transmitted by said transmitting means.