Information processing apparatus and control method therefor

• US 7,890,973 B2
• Filed: 07/20/2007
• Issued: 02/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Shibamiya, Yoshikazu, Shikata, Yasushi, Urabe, Hirofumi, Matsubayashi, Kazuhiro, Maruyama, Kazuna, Mito, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Koenig; Andrew Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Castro; Alfonso
• Application Number:
  US11/780,755
• Publication Number:
  US 20080052614A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,306 Days
• Field of Search: 725/39
• US Class Current: 725/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• 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 21/4782 Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• 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 21/8586 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

An information processing apparatus which, in addition to displaying an electronic program guide in a display screen, uses URL information in order to display web pages when there is URL information associated with the programs displayed in the electronic program guide. Program information and the URL information concerning associated web pages are stored in correlated form and a determination is made, for instance, as to whether any URL information is associated with an in-focus program in the electronic program guide. If there is associated URL information, the URL information is used to display a web page. If the web page is switched, a determination is made as to whether there is a program associated with the web page obtained as a result of the switch and, if there is an associated program, the focus is changed to that program.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus capable of displaying an electronic program guide and a web page on a display unit by respectively allocating them in an EPG display area and a Web page display area of a display screen of the display unit, comprising:

a storage unit that stores program-related information and web page URL information associated with each other in advance;

an electronic program guide generation unit that acquires electronic program guide data and generates an electronic program guide that can be displayed in the EPG display area;

a web page generation unit that acquires web page data and generates a web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area based on the acquired web page data;

a display control unit that generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area; and

an operation unit that receives a command input in order to select either of the web page and the electronic program guide to be operated and, if the Web page is selected, further receives a command input from a user in order to display a Web page and if the electronic program guide is selected, further receives a command input from the user in order to select a program from programs included in the electronic program guide,

wherein, when a command input to change a currently displayed web page to the new web page is received by the operation unit,

the web page generation unit acquires web page data based on URL information of the new web page and generates a new web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area,

the electronic program guide generation unit determines whether there is a program associated with the new web page based on the URL information of the new web page and, the program-related information and the web page URL information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a program associated with the new web page, the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the program associated with the new web page and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the new electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the new web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area, and

wherein, when the command input in order to select a program included in an electronic program guide displayed in the EPG display area is received by the operation unit,

the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the selected program and determines whether there is a web page associated with the selected program based on the information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a web page associated with the selected program, the web page generation unit acquires web page data of the web page associated with the selected program and generates a web page associated with the selected program that can be displayed in the Web page display area, and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide, in which a focus is set to the selected program and generated by the electronic program guide generation unit, is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page, associated with the selected program and generated by the web page generation unit, is allocated in the Web page display area.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the web page URL information stored in the storage unit is information obtained by extracting URL information multiplexed over a broadcast signal or URL information arbitrarily entered by a user.

3. A control method for an information processing apparatus that, along with being capable of displaying an electronic program guide and a web page on a display unit by respectively allocating them in an EPG display area and a Web page display area of a display screen of the display unit, comprises

a storage unit that stores program-related information and web page URL information associated with each other in advance,

an electronic program guide generation unit that acquires electronic program guide data and generating an electronic program guide that can be displayed in the EPG display area,

a web page generation unit that acquires web page data and generates a web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area based on the acquired web page data,

a display control unit that generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area, and

an operation unit that receives a command input to select either of the web page and the electronic program guide is to be operated and, if the Web page is selected, further receives a command input from a user in order to display a Web page and if the electronic program guide is selected, further receives a command input from the user in order to select a program from programs included in the electronic program guide, said method comprising:

a step in which, when a command input to change a currently displayed web page to the new web page is received by the operation unit the web page generation unit acquires web page data based on a URL information of the new web page and generates a new web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area,

the electronic program guide generation unit determines whether there is a program associated with the new web page based on the URL information of the new web page and, the program-related information and the web page URL information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a program associated with the new web page, the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the program associated with the new web page and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the new electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the new web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area; and

a step in which, when the command input in order to select a program included in an electronic program guide displayed in the EPG display area is received by the operation unit,

the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the selected program and determines whether there is a web page associated with the selected program based on the information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a web page associated with the selected program, the web page generation unit acquires web page data of the web page associated with the selected program and generates a web page associated with the selected program that can be displayed in the Web page display area, and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide, in which a focus is set to the selected program and generated by the electronic program guide generation unit, is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page, associated with the selected program and generated by the web page generation unit, is allocated in the Web page display area.

4. The control method for an information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the web page URL information stored in the storage unit is information obtained by extracting URL information multiplexed over a broadcast signal or URL information arbitrarily entered by a user.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a software program for causing a computer to operate as an information processing apparatus capable of displaying an electronic program guide and a web page on a display unit by respectively allocating them in an EPG display area and a Web page display area of a display screen of the display unit, comprising:

a storage unit that stores program-related information and web page URL information associated with each other in advance;

an electronic program guide generation unit that acquires electronic program guide data and generates an electronic program guide that can be displayed in the EPG display area;

a web page generation unit that acquires web page data and generates a web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area based on the acquired web page data;

a display control unit that generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area; and

an operation unit that receives a command input in order to select either of the web page and the electronic program guide to be operated and, if the Web page is selected, further receives a command input from a user in order to display a Web page and if the electronic program guide is selected, further receives a command input from the user in order to select a program from programs included in the electronic program guide,

wherein, when a command input to change a currently displayed web page to the new web page is received by the operation unit,

the web page generation unit acquires web page data based on a URL information of the new web page and generates a new web page that can be displayed in the Web page display area,

the electronic program guide generation unit determines whether there is a program associated with the new web page based on the URL information of the new web page and, the program-related information and the web page URL information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a program associated with the new web page, the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the program associated with the new web page and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the new electronic program guide generated by the electronic program guide generation unit is allocated in the EPG display area and the new web page generated by the web page generation unit is allocated in the Web page display area, and

wherein, when the command input in order to select a program included in an electronic program guide displayed in the EPG display area is received by the operation unit,

the electronic program guide generation unit generates a new electronic program guide in which a focus is set to the selected program and determines whether there is a web page associated with the selected program based on the information stored in the storage unit, and

if the results of the determination show that there is a web page associated with the selected program, the web page generation unit acquires web page data of the web page associated with the selected program and generates a web page associated with the selected program that can be displayed in the Web page display area, and the display control unit generates display screen data in which the electronic program guide, in which a focus is set to the selected program and generated by the electronic program guide generation unit, is allocated in the EPG display area and the web page, associated with the selected program and generated by the web page generation unit, is allocated in the Web page display area.