Playback device, television receiver, apparatus selection method, program and recording medium

• US 9,225,933 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2012
• Issued: 12/29/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Mitsuru
• Primary Examiner(s): Gauthier, Gerald
• Application Number:
  US14/359,016
• Publication Number:
  US 20140267542A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,216 Days
• Field of Search: 340/540, 345/212, 348/14.01, 348/553, 348/14.04, 367/99, 370/352, 370/356, 370/310, 379/93.17, 379/142.16, 379/93.23, 379/142.04, 455/466, 455/404.2, 455/406, 463/25, 709/223, 715/758, 715/805, 725/12, 725/32, 725/62, 725/110, 726/9, 704/235
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1046 Call controllers; Call servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1059 End-user terminal functionalities specially adapted for real-time communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/54 Presence management, e.g. monitoring or registration for receipt of user log-on information, or the connection status of the users
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4143 embedded in a Personal Computer [PC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/141 between two video terminals, e.g. videophone telephonic communication systems combined with television receiver for reception of entertainment or information matter H04M11/085

Abstract

A television (1) including a function of a call using Internet Protocol (IP) includes: a communicating section to transmit and receive a call signal over an IP communication network; an incoming call destination identifying section (11) to identify a user who is designated as an incoming call destination; a judging section to detect a person who is present around the television (1); and a communication control section (13) to transfer the call signal to a mobile phone (4) of the user in a case where a plurality of persons containing the user has been detected. This offers a television capable of a call and ensuring the privacy of the call.

Claims

1. A playback device (i) including a function of carrying out a call using Internet Protocol (IP) and (ii) being capable of playing back one of a picture image and a sound, the playback device comprising:

one or more processors,

the one or more processors transmitting and receiving a call signal over an IP communication network, the call signal representing a sound of a voice during the call;

the one or more processors identifying a user who is designated as an incoming call destination of the call;

the one or more processors detecting a person who is present around the playback device; and

in a case where the one or more processors have detected a plurality of persons containing the user, the one or more processors transferring the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to another device which is associated with the user to carry out the call.

2. The playback device according to claim 1, wherein

the user and a user-specific feature amount are recorded, so as to be associated with each other, in a storing section accessible from the playback device,

the one or more processors extract a feature amount of a person(s) having been detected by the one or more processors, and

the one or more processors are configured to transfer the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to the another device associated with the user, if the following conditions are met:

(a) that the one or more processors have detected a plurality of persons; and

(b) that a feature amount of any one of the persons, which feature amount has been extracted by the one or more processors, matches the user-specific feature amount.

3. The playback device according to claim 2, wherein

address information on a mobile terminal associated with the user is further recorded in the storing section so as to be associated with the user and the user-specific feature amount, and

the one or more processors refer to the address information to transfer the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to the mobile terminal associated with the user.

4. The playback device according to claim 1, wherein:

the one or more processors request another playback device, which is communicably connected to said playback device, to make a response as to whether or not the user is present around the another playback device, and

the one or more processors are configured to transfer the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to any playback device which has made a response, to said playback device, that the user is present alone around that playback device.

5. The playback device according to claim 1,

in a case where the one or more processors detect only the user during transfer of the call signal by the one or more processors, the one or more processors stop the transfer of the call signal.

6. The playback device according to claim 3, wherein

the picture image includes category information indicative of a category of the picture image, and

in a case where the category information of a picture image being played back by said playback device indicates a predetermined category, the one or more processors transfer the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to the mobile terminal associated with the user.

7. A television receiver comprising the one or more processors of a playback device according to claim 1.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing therein a program for causing a computer to function as the one or more processors of a playback device according to claim 1.

9. A playback device (i) including a function of carrying out a call using Internet Protocol (IP) and (ii) being capable of playing back one of a picture image and a sound, the playback device comprising:

one or more processors,

the one or more processors transmitting and receiving a call signal over an IP communication network, the call signal representing a sound of a voice during the call;

the one or more processors identifying a user who is designated as an incoming call destination of the call;

the one or more processors detecting a person who is present around the playback device; and

in a case where the one or more processors have not detected the user thus identified, the one or more processors transferring the call signal having been received by the one or more processors to another device associated with the user to carry out the call.

10. A method for a playback device (i) including a function of carrying out a call using Internet Protocol (IP) and (ii) being capable of playing back one of a picture image and a sound, to select a device to carry out a call process, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving a call signal over an IP communication network, the call signal representing a sound of a voice during the call;

(b) identifying a user who is designated as an incoming call destination of the call;

(c) detecting a person who is present around the playback device; and

(d) in a case where a plurality of persons containing the user have been detected in the step (c), transferring the call signal having been received in the step (a) to another device which is associated with the user to carry out the call.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein

after the step (d), the steps (c) and (d) are repeatedly carried out until the call is completed.

12. A method for a playback device (i) including a function of carrying out a call using Internet Protocol (IP) and (ii) being capable of playing back one of a picture image and a sound, to select a device to carry out a call process, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) transmitting and receiving a call signal over an IP communication network, the call signal representing a sound of a voice during the call;

(b) identifying a user who is designated as an incoming call destination of the call;

(c) detecting a person who is present around the playback device; and

(d) in a case where the user thus identified has not been detected in the step (c), transferring the call signal having been received in the step (a) to another device which is associated with the user to carry out the call.