Signal processing apparatus and method, signal processing system, and printer

• US 7,137,136 B1
• Filed: 09/05/2000
• Issued: 11/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Aratani, Shuntaro
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Manning, John
• Application Number:
  US09/654,727
• Time in Patent Office: 2,261 Days
• Field of Search: 725 37- 61, 725/133, 725/141, 725/153, 725/135
• US Class Current: 725/53
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4117 for generating hard copies of the content, e.g. printer, electronic paper interfaces to printers G06F3/12; printing data G06K15/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4135 external recorder interface circuits between an apparatus for recording television signals and a television receiver H04N5/775
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42661 for reading from or writing on a magnetic storage medium, e.g. hard disk drive
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• 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 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• 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 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

A signal processing apparatus has a search unit for searching input program information in accordance with a predetermined search condition, an assignment unit for assigning a code to a program corresponding to the program information searched by the search unit, and a processing unit for executing a process for the program in accordance with the code assigned by the assignment unit.

Claims

1. A signal processing apparatus, comprising:

a processing unit adapted to execute a plurality of processes;

an assigning unit adapted to automatically assign each process with a unique code used for executing each of the plurality of processes;

a control unit adapted to control said processing unit to execute the plurality of processes in accordance with the code assigned by said assigning unit;

an input unit adapted to input program data and program information of the program data; and

a searching unit adapted to search the program information input by said input unit in accordance with a predetermined search condition, wherein said searching unit adds a search point if a program matches a search condition and selects a program having a high search point; and

wherein the search condition includes a condition that the search point lowers more as the number of assignment times of the code by said assigning unit for the plurality of processes is larger.

2. A signal processing method, comprising:

a processing step of executing a plurality of processes by a processing unit;

an assigning step of automatically assigning each process with a unique code used for executing each of the plurality of processes;

a control step of controlling the processing unit to execute the plurality of processes in accordance with the code assigned by said assigning step;

an input step of inputting program data and program information of the program data; and

a searching step of searching the program information input in said input step in accordance with a predetermined search condition, wherein said searching step adds a search point if a program matches a search condition and selects a program having a high search point; and

wherein the search condition includes a condition that the search point lowers more as the number of assignment times of the code in said assigning step for the plurality of processes is larger.