Television transmitter, television transmitting method, television receiver and television receiving method

• US 6,785,905 B1
• Filed: 10/29/1999
• Issued: 08/31/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Enomoto, Takaaki, Nishioka, Hisao, Ota, Jun, Kisanuki, Chisato
• Primary Examiner(s): Srivastava, Vivek
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUI, KIEU OANH T
• Application Number:
  US09/430,825
• Time in Patent Office: 1,768 Days
• Field of Search: 725/51, 725/52, 725/40, 725/110, 725/112, 725/38, 725/115, 725/131, 725/151, 725/116, 725/145, 725/146, 709/219
• US Class Current: 725/110
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• 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 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02

Abstract

A television method and receiver are configured to receive a television broadcast signal that includes multimedia data files including hypertext data. The multimedia data files relate to a television program guide and the hypertext data includes address information that designates a linked multimedia data file. Once extracted and stored, a processor interprets the multimedia data files and generates a display signal including the television program guide and link portions based on the hypertext data. The processor is able to recognize and address information of each link portion that is pointed to by way of a user interface. The processor then retrieves the linked multimedia data file corresponding to the recognized address information and interprets the retrieved linked multimedia data file so as to generate the display signal.

Claims

1. A television receiver comprising:

a receiving means for receiving a television broadcast signal including television program signals and multimedia data files including hyper text data, the multimedia data files relating to a television program guide, said hyper text data including address information which designates a linked multimedia data file;

an extraction means for extracting said multimedia data files from the received television broadcast signal;

a connect means for connecting to a network in order to get control signals for controlling an execution of a process;

a storage means for storing the extracted multimedia data files and said linked multimedia data file;

a processing means for retrieving at least one of the stored multimedia data files from said storage means, and for interpreting the retrieved at least one of said multimedia data files and generating a display signal including said television program guide and link portions based on said hyper text data; and

a user interface means for pointing to the displayed link portions,

wherein said processing means recognizes said address information of each pointed to link portion, retrieves said linked multimedia data file corresponding to the recognized address information from said storage means, and interprets the retrieved linked multimedia data file and generates said display signal.

2. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein said multimedia data files further includes as least one of image data, audio data, text data and moving picture data.

3. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein said user interface means is a remote commander.

4. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein said multimedia data files are transmitted at a predetermined time from a broadcast station.

5. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein said hyper text data is written in Hyper Text Markup Language.

6. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein said address information designates said linked multimedia data file located at a server on a computer network.

7. The television receiver according to claim 6, further comprising:

a connection means for establishing a connection with said server having said address information and for receiving said linked multimedia data file from said server; and

a control means for controlling said connection means to execute establishment of said connection when said address information recognized by said processing means designates said linked multimedia data file located at said server on said computer network.

8. The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein:

said link portions include video recorder information; and

said processing means is further configured to generate a video recorder control signal for controlling a video recorder according to said video recorder information as selected by said user interface means.

9. A television receiving method comprising:

a receiving step of receiving a television broadcast signal including television program signals and multimedia data files including hyper text data, the multimedia data files relating to a television program guide, said hyper text data including address information which designates a linked multimedia data file;

an extraction step of extracting said multimedia data files from the received television broadcast signal;

a connecting step of connecting to a network in order to get control signals for controlling an execution of a process;

a storage step of storing the extracted multimedia data files and said linked multimedia data file;

a processor step of retrieving at least one of the stored multimedia data files stored in said storage step, and of interpreting the retrieved at least one of the stored multimedia data files and generating a display signal including said television program guide and link portions based on said hyper text data; and

a user interface step of pointing to at least one of the displayed link portions,

wherein said processor step further recognizes said address information of each pointed to link portion, retrieves said linked multimedia data file corresponding to the recognized address information stored in said storage step, interprets the retrieved linked multimedia data file, and generates said display signal.

10. The television receiving method according to claim 9, wherein said multimedia data files further includes as least one of image data, audio data, text data and moving picture data.

11. The television receiving method according to claim 9,

wherein said user interface step is performed using a remote commander.

12. The television receiving method according to claim 9, wherein said multimedia data files are transmitted at a predetermined time from a broadcast station.

13. The television receiving method according to claim 9,

wherein said hyper text data is written in Hyper Text Markup Language.

14. The television receiving method according to claim 9, wherein said address information designates said linked multimedia data file located at a server on a computer network.

15. The television receiving method according to claim 14, further comprising:

a connection step of establishing a connection with said server having said address information and of receiving said linked multimedia data file from said server; and

a control step of controlling said connection step to execute establishment of said connection when said address information recognized in said processor step designates said linked multimedia data file located at said server on said computer network.

16. The television receiving method according to claim 9, wherein:

said link portions include video recorder information; and

said processing step further generates a video recorder control signal for controlling a video recorder according to said video recorder information as selected in said user interface step.

17. A television receiver comprising:

a television broadcast reception circuit configured to receive a television broadcast signal and in accordance therewith generate television program signals;

a data broadcast reception circuit, coupled to said television broadcast reception circuit, said data broadcast reception circuit configured to receive said television broadcast signal and in accordance therewith generate multimedia data files relating to a television program guide, wherein said television broadcast signal includes said television program signals and said multimedia data files, wherein said multimedia data files includes hyper text data, and wherein said hyper text data includes address information which designates a linked multimedia data file;

a connection mechanism configured to connect to a network so as to get control signals for controlling an execution of a process;

a disk drive configured to store said multimedia data files and said linked multimedia data file;

an audio-visual processing circuit, coupled to said data broadcast reception circuit and said television broadcast reception circuit, said audio-visual processing circuit configured to receive said television program signals and said multimedia data files and in accordance therewith generate a display signal including said television program guide and link portions according to said hyper text data; and

a control microcomputer, coupled to said data broadcast reception circuit, said television broadcast reception circuit, said audio-visual processing circuit and said disk drive, said control microcomputer configured to receive an operation signal and in accordance therewith control said data broadcast reception circuit, said television broadcast reception circuit, said audio-visual processing circuit and said disk drive, wherein said operation signal further indicates selection of at least one of said link portions by a user, and in accordance therewith said audio-visual processing circuit generates said display signal.

18. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein said multimedia data files further include as least one of image data, audio data, text data and moving picture data.

19. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein said operation signal is generated by a remote commander.

20. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein said multimedia data files are transmitted at a predetermined time from a broadcast station.

21. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein said hyper text data is written in Hyper Text Markup Language.

22. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein said address information designates said linked multimedia data file located at a server on a computer network.

23. The television receiver according to claim 22, further comprising:

a modem, coupled to said control microcomputer, said modem configured to establish a connection with said server having said address information and to receive said linked multimedia data file from said server,

wherein said control microcomputer is further configured to control said modem to execute establishment of said connection when said address information designates said linked multimedia data file located at said server on said computer network.

24. The television receiver according to claim 17, wherein:

said link portions include video recorder information; and

said control microcomputer is further configured to generate a video recorder control signal for controlling a video recorder according to said video recorder information as selected by said operation signal.