Method and apparatus for producing program information and receiving apparatus for processing the information in a broadcast system

• US 6,751,401 B1
• Filed: 12/03/1998
• Issued: 06/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Yasuhiro, Fujita, Kenichi, Suzuki, Takayuki, Nagao, Takeshi, Goto, Yoshimasa, Arai, Yuko, Nakagawa, Aki, Shinohara, Hiroki, Nishi, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Kostak, Victor R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUYNH, AN SON PHI
• Application Number:
  US09/204,168
• Time in Patent Office: 2,021 Days
• Field of Search: 725/40, 725/43, 725/45, 725/52, 725/58, 348/907, 348/460, 386/83, 386/1, 386/43
• US Class Current: 386/291
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/28 Arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/21 Billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/42 for identifying broadcast areas
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/72 using electronic programme guides [EPG] focusing on identifying broadcast space time H04H60/39 ; menu type display of EPG in television receivers H04N21/47
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/94 Telephonic networks for accessing the Internet H04H60/84
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2355 involving reformatting operations of additional data, e.g. HTML pages optimising the visualization of content for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/9577; tracking of instant messages H04L51/234; media packet handling at the source H04L65/762
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23608 Remultiplexing multiplex streams, e.g. involving modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26216 involving the channel capacity, e.g. network bandwidth admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a schedule or organising the servicing of application requests taking into account QoS H04L67/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4335 Housekeeping operations, e.g. prioritizing content for deletion because of storage space restrictions storage management, e.g. defragmentation G06F3/0604; unloading stored programs G06F9/445; storage management in file systems G06F16/10; buffering arrangements in a network node or in an end terminal in packet networks H04L49/90
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4344 Remultiplexing of multiplex streams, e.g. by modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• 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 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• 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 21/858 Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 : on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 : Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

A program information producing apparatus broadcasts program information of a next program belonging to the same program group as a subjective program in addition to the program information of the subjective program. A broadcast receiving apparatus displays the program information of the next program based on the received program information of the subjective program, thereby allowing a viewer to make a reservation of the next program after checking its content during the user viewing each event of a series of programs.

Claims

1. A broadcast system for broadcasting a program of a broadcaster defined program group and related program information, comprising:

a program information producing apparatus for producing program information about at least one program of a series within said program group, said program information including at least one attribute designating a recording method for each program belonging to the same series;

wherein, when a plurality of programs belonging to the same series are to be recorded and/or viewed, means to enable a viewer to designate whether to automatically record said program or to automatically tune in to said program without recording it;

wherein, when the viewer designates recording of said program, the recording method designated by said attribute allows the viewer to select automatically recording of a program over a previously recorded program of the same series or automatically recording a program without erasing said previously recorded program of the same series; and

a broadcast receiving apparatus for receiving said program and said program information produced by said program information producing apparatus and adapted to perform recording of the program in accordance with the attribute included in said program information designating the method of recording the program to be recorded.

2. A program information producing apparatus, for use when a broadcaster defines a program group, consisting essentially of:

a plurality of programs comprising;

program group information producing means for producing program information about at least one program of said program group constituting a series,

wherein said program information includes means to enable a viewer to decide whether to record a program or to tune in to said program without recording it; and

,

where said viewer decides to record said program, said apparatus further including at least one attribute designating a recording method for each program belonging to the same series when a plurality of programs belonging to said same series are to be recorded,

wherein the recording method designated by said attribute enables a viewer to select automatically recording a program over a previously recorded program of the same series or automatically recording a program without erasing said previously recorded program of the same series; and

transmitting means for transmitting said program and program information produced by said program group information producing means.