Information processing apparatus and method as well as software program

• US 8,341,673 B2
• Filed: 10/22/2008
• Issued: 12/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Tsunokawa, Motoki, Shinagawa, Yasufumi, Narahara, Tatsuya, Fujiwara, Nobuyuki, Watanabe, Kazuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Ingvoldstad, Bennett
• Application Number:
  US12/255,701
• Publication Number:
  US 20090055855A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,525 Days
• Field of Search: 725/40
• US Class Current: 725/45
• 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 21/466 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• 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 21/482 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 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8352 involving content or source identification data, e.g. Unique Material Identifier [UMID]
• 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 21/8405 represented by keywords
• 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 5/76 Television signal recording
• 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 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

The present invention concerns an information processing apparatus, a method thereof, and a program for allowing the audience to easily search for intended television programs. A server stores characteristic words extracted from television program information in a characteristic word file 103. The server also stores the extracted characteristic words associated with IDs for identifying television programs in an association file 102. When the audience selects a characteristic word as an interested word from the characteristic word file 103, the server reads the ID of a television program corresponding to the selected characteristic word from the association file 102. The server reads television program information corresponding to the read ID from a television program information file 101. The server then provides the read television program information to the audience. The present invention can be applied to a recording/reproducing apparatus and a television receiver to provide intended television programs.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a processor programmed to

acquire a plurality of television program information which includes information concerning respective television program contents and a plurality of television program IDs which each identify a respective television program information;

analyze said plurality of television program information and extract at least one word from each of the plurality of television program information, the at least one extracted word being included in said plurality of television program information, wherein the television program information is to be displayed on a display device;

determine a plurality of characteristic words from said extracted words, wherein each said determined characteristic word is a word that represents a characteristic of one of said respective television program contents;

create a file containing said determined characteristic words extracted from each of said plurality of respective television program information concerning said respective television program contents and provide said file to said display device to be displayed;

create an association file containing the plurality of determined characteristic words and associate each of the plurality of determined characteristic words with a respective television program ID of the television program information corresponding to said characteristic word; and

receive a selected characteristic word from said display device, identifying a respective television program ID associated with the received selected characteristic word by comparing the received selected characteristic word with the plurality of determined characteristic words contained in the association file, and provide said display device with television program information concerning respective television program contents corresponding to said identified respective television program ID.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor counts the number of occurrences of a given word contained in each of said television program information and extracts a word having a count value exceeding a minimum number of occurrences, and determines said extracted word as said characteristic word.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor analyzes a sentence contained in said television program information and extracts said at least one word included in said television program information from a remaining part except a part corresponding to a specified prescription.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor extracts a predetermined word and determines said extracted word as said characteristic word.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor prevents a predetermined word from being extracted.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said the processor determines whether or not a synonym is found in a plurality of words extracted and, if a synonym is determined to be found, converts said extracted word into a specified word and determines said extracted word as said at least one characteristic word.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor determines whether or not said file already stores a characteristic word and, if already stored, does not add said characteristic word to said file.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processor provides said display device with a plurality of television program information corresponding to a plurality of respective television program contents when said selected characteristic word is included in the plurality of television program information.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a memory that stores the plurality of television program information to be provided to the display device in a television program information file that is separate from the association file and the file containing the determined characteristic words.

2. An information processing method, implemented on an information processing apparatus, comprising:

acquiring, at the information processing apparatus, a plurality of television program information which includes information concerning respective television program contents and a plurality of television program IDs which each identify a respective television program information;

analyzing, at the information processing apparatus, said plurality of television program information and extracting, at the information processing apparatus, at least one word from each of the plurality of television program information, the at least one extracted word being included in said plurality of television program information, wherein the television program information is to be displayed on a display device;

determining, at the information processing apparatus, a plurality of characteristic words from said extracted words, wherein each said determined characteristic word is a word that represents a characteristic of one of said respective television program contents;

creating, at the information processing apparatus, a file containing said determined characteristic words extracted from each of said plurality of respective television program information concerning said respective television program contents and providing said file to said display device to be displayed;

creating, at the information processing apparatus, an association file containing the plurality of determined characteristic words and associating each of the plurality of determined characteristic words with a respective television program ID of the television program information corresponding to said characteristic word; and

receiving, at the information processing apparatus, a selected characteristic word from said display device, identifying, at the information processing apparatus, a respective television program ID associated with the received selected characteristic word by comparing the received selected characteristic word with the plurality of determined characteristic words contained in the association file, and providing, at the information processing apparatus, said display device with television program information concerning respective television program contents corresponding to the identified respective television program ID.

3. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium for storing therein a computer program that includes instructions which when executed on a computer causes the computer to execute a method comprising:

acquiring, at the storage medium, a plurality of television program information which includes information concerning respective television program contents and a plurality of television program IDs which each identify a respective television program information;

analyzing, at the storage medium, said plurality of television program information and extracting, at the information processing apparatus, at least one word from each of the plurality of television program information, the at least one extracted word being included in said plurality of television program information, wherein the television program information is to be displayed on a display device;

determining, at the storage medium, a plurality of characteristic words from said extracted words, wherein each said determined characteristic word is a word that represents a characteristic of one of said respective television program contents;

creating, at the storage medium, a file containing said determined characteristic words extracted from each of said plurality of respective television program information concerning said respective television program contents and providing said file to said display device to be displayed;

creating, at the storage, an association file containing the plurality of determined characteristic words and associating each of the plurality of determined characteristic words with a respective television program ID of the television program information corresponding to said characteristic word; and

receiving, at the storage medium, a selected characteristic word from said display device, identifying, at the storage medium, a respective television program ID associated with the received selected characteristic word by comparing the received selected characteristic word with the plurality of determined characteristic words contained in the association file, and providing, at the storage medium, said display device with television program information concerning respective television program contents corresponding to said identified respective television program ID.