Receiving apparatus and control method therefor

• US 7,924,817 B2
• Filed: 08/23/2005
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ohno, Tomoyuki, Hoshi, Nobuhiro, Ichihashi, Nobuharu
• Primary Examiner(s): Ton; Dang T
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zhao; Wei
• Application Number:
  US11/208,527
• Publication Number:
  US 20060039361A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,058 Days
• Field of Search: 370/352, 348/734
• US Class Current: 370/352
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42615 involving specific demultiplexing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/434 Disassembling of a multiplex stream, e.g. demultiplexing audio and video streams, extraction of additional data from a video stream; Remultiplexing of multiplex streams; Extraction or processing of SI; Disassembling of packetised elementary stream demultiplexing of data packets for data networks, e.g. RTP/UDP H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/50 Tuning indicators; Automatic tuning control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction

Abstract

The tuner unit of a digital broadcast receiving apparatus receives a digital broadcast and generates a data stream from a digital broadcast signal having a desired modulation frequency. A data stream of a digital broadcast is also input from an external digital broadcast receiving apparatus via an external I/F. A stream switching unit and demultiplexer play back the content on a desired channel, contained in the two data streams, on an image display unit in real time, and at the same time, store the content on the other channel, contained in the other data stream, in a storage unit. This makes it possible to watch one of at least two programs with different modulation frequencies while recording the other program.

Claims

1. A digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus that is connected to an external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus, said digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus comprising:

a tuner unit configured to receive a digital TV broadcast signal, demodulate a signal of a modulation frequency including a selected first channel, and output a first transport stream;

a display unit;

a storage unit

a display control unit configured to display video data of the first channel, which is included in the first transport stream output by said tuner unit, on the display unit;

an operation unit configured to receive an instruction for selecting a second channel so as to store data of the second channel in the storage unit while video data of the first channel is displayed on the display unit;

a determination unit configured to determine whether or not the modulation frequency includes the second channel instructed through said operation unit;

an external interface control unit configured to, when said determining unit determines that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel, acquire a Network Information Table (NIT) from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus, determine whether or not the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel by analyzing the acquired NIT, and control the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus to output a second transport stream including video data of the second channel if it is determined that the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel; and

a recording unit configured to store, into said storage unit, video data of the second channel that is included in the first transport stream output from said tuner unit when said determining unit determines that the modulation frequency includes the second channel, and to store, into said storage unit, the video data of the second channel included in the second transport stream output from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus when said determining unit determines that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel, and the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel,

wherein the display control unit keeps displaying the video data of the first channel on the display unit while the recording unit is storing the video data of the second channel, and

if it is determined by the external interface control unit that the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can not receive the second channel, the display control unit displays a message indicating the same.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first demultiplexer configured to extract the video data of the first channel from the first transport stream output from said tuner unit; and

a second demultiplexer configured to extract the video data of the second channel from the first transport stream output from said tuner unit when said determining unit determines that the modulation frequency includes the second channel, and to extract the video data of the second channel from the second transport stream output from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus when said determining unit determines that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said determining unit determines whether or not the modulation frequency includes the second channel by analyzing program association information included in the digital TV broadcast signal received by said tuner unit.

4. A method for controlling a digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus, that is connected to an external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus, and that comprises a display unit and a storage unit, said method comprising:

a tuner control step of controlling a tuner unit to receive a digital TV broadcast signal, demodulate a signal of a modulation frequency including a selected first channel, and output a first transport stream;

a display control step of displaying, on the display unit, video data of the first channel, which is included in the first transport stream output in said tuner control step;

an operation reception step of receiving an instruction for selecting a second channel so as to store video data of the second channel in the storage unit while video data of the first channel is displayed on the display unit;

a determination step of determining whether or not the modulation frequency includes the second channel instructed in said operation reception step;

an external interface control step of, when it is determined in said determining step that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel, acquiring a Network Information Table (NIT) from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus, determining whether or not the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel by analyzing the acquired NIT, and controlling the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus to output a second transport stream including video data of the second channel if it is determined that the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel; and

a recording step of storing, into the storage unit, video data of the second channel that are included in the first transport stream output from said tuner unit when it is determined in said determining step that the modulation frequency includes the second channel, and storing, into said storage unit, video data of the second channel included in the second transport stream output from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus when it is determined in said determining step that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel and the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can receive the second channel,

wherein the display control step keeps displaying the video data of the first channel on the display unit while the video data of the second channel is being stored in the recording step, and

if it is determined in the external interface control step that the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus can not receive the second channel, the display control step displays a message indicating the same.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising:

a first demultiplexing step of extracting video data of the first channel from the first transport stream output in said tuner control step; and

a second demultiplexing step of extracting video data of the second channel from the first transport stream output in said tuner control step when it is determined in said determining step that the modulation frequency includes the second channel, and extracting video data of the second channel from the second transport stream output from the external digital TV broadcast receiving apparatus when it is determined in said determining step that the modulation frequency does not include the second channel.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein, in said determining step, it is determined whether or not the modulation frequency includes the second channel by analyzing program association information included in the digital TV broadcast signal received in said tuner control step.