JP2008022172A - Broadcast receiving device and method of updating delivered information - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a broadcast receiving device which can determine whether or not the update of delivered information stored therein is necessary, and can automatically update the delivered information. <P>SOLUTION: After transmitting a request for receiving a multicast broadcast based on information about a broadcast channel selected last time and the delivered information stored in a non-volatile memory, up-to-date delivered information is acquired from an IP communication network. An area code included in the acquired delivered information, and an area code included in the delivered information stored in the non-volatile memory are compared. When they do not coincide with each other, the existing delivered information stored in the non-volatile memory is updated by replacing it with the acquired delivered information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a broadcast receiving apparatus and a distribution information updating method for receiving a broadcast signal distributed by multicast to an IP (Internet Protocol) communication network.

  An IP broadcast service that multicasts a TV broadcast service using an IP communication network has been proposed. In such an IP broadcast service, it is conceivable to realize distribution by IP multicast by assigning a multicast address, a transmission source port number, etc. to each broadcast channel.

  On the other hand, when a broadcast receiving device of a user who uses an IP broadcast service acquires distribution information, which is information necessary for receiving a multicast broadcast distributed to an IP communication network, from the server, If it is stored in the non-volatile memory, it will receive the IP broadcast service without delay after the system is started by turning on the power by sending the receiving request of the multicast package using the distribution information read from the non-volatile memory at the next start-up. Can be expected to do. Here, the distribution information includes an area code that uniquely identifies the service area of the IP broadcast service, version data indicating the version of the distribution information, stream distribution information for each service (broadcast channel), and the like. A multicast address, a transmission source port number, and an ID (TS_ID) of a transport stream (TS) to be distributed are assumed to be configured. Further, it is assumed that the latest distribution information is managed for each service area in a distribution information server connected to the IP communication network.

  By the way, it is conceivable that the operation of the IP broadcast service is independent for each service area, and the multicast broadcast to be distributed is different for each service area. Under such service management, when the service area to which the broadcast receiving device belongs changes, the distribution information stored in the nonvolatile memory by the broadcast receiving device becomes invalid in the service area to which the broadcast receiving device is changed, and multicast broadcast You may be unable to receive. In this case, the user needs to execute a procedure for requesting the distribution information server to obtain the latest distribution information through the IP communication network, and replace the distribution information in the nonvolatile memory with the latest distribution information.

As a technique related to the update of the above distribution information, Patent Document 1 discloses a new allocation information acquired from a server through a network by assigning a channel and a broadcasting station set to a receiving terminal that receives a terrestrial broadcast. The replacement is described. However, Patent Document 1 does not show a specific mechanism for determining whether or not to update the allocation or updating the allocation based on the result of the determination.
JP 2002-335474 A (paragraph 0191)

  As described above, in the IP broadcast system, when a change in the service area to which the broadcast receiving device belongs, the distribution information stored in the nonvolatile memory by the broadcast receiving device becomes invalid in the change destination service area, There are cases where multicast broadcasts cannot be received. In this case, the user needs to execute a procedure for requesting the distribution information server to obtain the latest distribution information through the IP communication network, and replace the distribution information in the nonvolatile memory with the latest distribution information.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a broadcast receiving apparatus and a distribution information update method that can easily determine whether or not to update distribution information and can update the distribution information.

  In order to achieve the above object, a broadcast receiving apparatus of the present invention includes a distribution information storage unit that stores distribution information necessary for receiving a multicast broadcast distributed to an IP communication network, and a broadcast channel that is finally selected. A reception request for the multicast broadcast based on the channel selection history storage unit storing the information of the broadcast channel, the broadcast channel information stored in the channel selection history storage unit, and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit. After transmission, the distribution information is acquired from the IP communication network, and the acquired distribution information is compared with the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit. A distribution information update unit that updates the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit.

  In the present invention, when the acquired distribution information and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit do not match, the distribution information update unit notifies the user that the update is necessary, and issues an update instruction from the user. When input, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit may be updated with the acquired distribution information. Of course, when the acquired distribution information and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit do not match, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit is automatically stored with the acquired distribution information. You may make it update.

  The distribution information includes a region code indicating the service area, and the distribution information update unit is stored in the region code and the distribution information storage unit in the distribution information acquired from the IP communication network. If the region code in the existing distribution information is compared and if there is a mismatch, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit is updated with the acquired distribution information. Also good.

  In the present invention, the distribution information includes identification information of a transport stream assigned to each multicast broadcast, and the distribution information update unit identifies the transport stream between the requested multicast broadcast and the received multicast broadcast. When the information is different, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit may be updated with the latest distribution information acquired from the IP communication network.

  The distribution information update unit updates existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit with the latest distribution information acquired from the IP communication network when the requested multicast broadcast cannot be received. There may be.

  As described above, according to the broadcast receiving apparatus and the distribution information updating method of the present invention, it is possible to easily determine whether or not to update the distribution information stored in the broadcast receiving apparatus and update it.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration example of an IP broadcast system for each service area according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 10-1,..., 10-n are IP broadcast transmission servers for transmitting broadcast signals to the router 12, respectively. Reference numeral 12 denotes a router that multicasts broadcast signals received from the IP broadcast transmission servers 10-1, ..., 10-n to the IP communication network 14. Reference numeral 16 denotes a broadcast receiving apparatus that receives the multicast broadcast distributed to the IP communication network 14 via the router 18. A router 18 relays communication between the IP communication network 14 and the broadcast receiving device 16. 20 manages the latest distribution information of each service area and, in response to a request from the broadcast receiving device 16, unicast distribution of the latest distribution information corresponding to the service area in which the broadcast receiving device 16 is installed. It is a server.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a basic configuration of the broadcast receiving device 16 of FIG. In this embodiment, the broadcast signal can be received via broadcast (on-air), but here, the description will focus on the case where the broadcast signal is received via the IP communication network 14.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the broadcast receiving device 16 includes a tuner unit 102, a descrambler 103, a TS decoding unit 104, a video / audio decoding unit 105, a display processing unit 106, a control unit 107, a key input unit 108, an IC card I / O. An F unit 110, a memory unit 112, and a communication processing unit 111 are provided.

  The tuner unit 102 selects a desired channel from the broadcast wave input to the broadcast receiving device 16. The broadcast signal selected by the tuner unit 102 is digitized by a demodulator (not shown), then processed by error correction and the like, converted to TS, and output to the descrambler 103.

  The communication processing unit 111 performs IP packet transmission / reception processing with respect to the IP communication network 14 via the router 18. The communication processing unit 111 receives, for example, an IP packet of multicast broadcast distributed to the IP communication network 14 via the router 18, extracts a TS through processing such as error correction for the received IP packet, Output to the Rambler 103.

  The descrambler 103 descrambles the TS input from the communication processing unit 111 and the demodulator and outputs the descrambled TS to the TS decoding unit 104.

  The TS decoding unit 104 separates necessary packets from the TS input from the descrambler 103 based on PSI (Program Specific Information), and further compresses and encodes video from the separated packets by the MPEG-2 method or the like. Extraction of data and voice data and various multiplexed data (various SI (Service Information) data, ECM, EMM, etc.) are separated. In addition, the TS decoding unit 104 outputs the extracted video data and audio data to the video / audio decoding unit 105.

  The video / audio decoding unit 105 decodes the compression-coded video data and audio data input from the TS decoding unit 104 and outputs uncompressed video data and audio data to the display processing unit 106.

  The display processing unit 106 generates a display signal and a speaker signal from the uncompressed video data and audio data input from the video / audio decoding unit 105, and outputs them to an external monitor and an external speaker, respectively. The display processing unit 106 generates an image signal for displaying a user interface screen and various error information screens when updating distribution information and the like, and replaces the image signal with a broadcast video signal to an external monitor. And a function of outputting a video signal synthesized with a broadcast video signal.

  The key input unit 108 has a function of receiving a remote operation signal by infrared rays or the like from a user interface device such as a remote controller (remote controller) 109. The memory unit 112 includes a RAM and a nonvolatile memory. The non-volatile memory stores distribution information, information on the last selected channel (broadcast channel), and the like. That is, the nonvolatile memory corresponds to the distribution information storage unit and the channel selection history storage unit in the claims of the present invention.

  The control unit 107 has a function of controlling the above functions in an integrated manner, and controls each functional block by bus connection, serial communication connection, or the like.

  The IC card I / F unit 110 is an IC card interface conforming to ISO 7816, which is an ISO standard.

  The IC card 115 performs contract management and viewing control. The IC card 115 includes a CPU 119, a ROM 116, a RAM 117, a nonvolatile memory 120, an I / F unit 118, and the like. The broadcast receiving device 16 is based on ISO 7816, which is an ISO standard. Connected with a compliant interface. In the nonvolatile memory 120 in the IC card 115, at least a card ID and a card-specific key are set in advance.

  The control unit 107 outputs the EMM or ECM separated from the TS by the TS decoding unit 104 to the IC card 115 via the IC card I / F unit 110. When an EMM is input from the IC card I / F unit 110, the IC card 115 decrypts the card with a key unique to the card, and stores information obtained by a contract such as a work key (Kw) in the nonvolatile memory in the IC card 115. 120. In addition, when the ECM is input from the IC card I / F unit 110, the IC card 115 can decrypt the work key (Kw) stored in the nonvolatile memory 120 in the IC card 115 and view the program. After the determination, whether or not viewing is possible, a scramble key (Ks) for descrambling is output to the broadcast receiver 16.

  In the broadcast receiver 16, the control unit 107 sets the scramble key (Ks) input from the IC card 115 in the descrambler 103 so that the descrambler 103 can descramble the content and view the program. Become.

  Next, distribution information distributed from the distribution information server 20 and stored in the RAM in the memory unit 112 of the broadcast receiving device 16 will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of distribution information. As shown in the figure, the distribution information includes a distribution method ID, a data version, a region code, stream distribution information, a program information server URL, and the like. Here, the area code is a code that uniquely identifies the service area of the IP broadcast service. The stream distribution information is information assigned to each service (broadcast channel) and includes a TS_ID, a multicast address, a transmission source port number, and the like. The broadcast receiving device 16 reads the multicast address and the transmission source port number in the stream distribution information assigned to the selected broadcast channel, and transmits a multicast broadcast reception request to the router 18 based on this. To do. The program information server URL is the URL of the distribution information server 20 that provides distribution information for each service area, and the broadcast receiving device 16 uses this program information server URL to access the distribution information server 20 to obtain the latest distribution information. Request acquisition.

  Next, the operation of the broadcast receiving device 16 of this IP broadcast system will be described.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the distribution information update process of the broadcast receiving device 16. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a user interface screen in the distribution information update process.

  The broadcast receiving device 16 stores information on the service (broadcast channel) selected last time in the nonvolatile memory of the memory unit 112 separately from the distribution information. In other words, the last last channel selection is the channel selection immediately before the power of the previous broadcast receiving device 16 is turned off.

  When the broadcast receiving device 16 is turned on, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 reads the information of the broadcast channel selected last time from the non-volatile memory of the memory unit 112 and stores it in the RAM of the memory unit 112. Store (step S401). Subsequently, the control unit 107 reads the distribution information from the nonvolatile memory of the memory unit 112 and stores it in the RAM of the memory unit 112 (step S402).

  Next, the control unit 107 generates a multicast broadcast reception request for the router 18 based on the stream distribution information corresponding to the broadcast channel that was last selected last time, and controls the communication processing unit 111 to control this multicast broadcast. A broadcast reception request is transmitted to the router 18 (step S403).

  Next, the control unit 107 generates a request for acquiring distribution information from the distribution information server 20 based on the program information server URL included in the distribution information, and controls the communication processing unit 111 to control the distribution information. An acquisition request is sent to the IP communication network 14 through the router 18. When the distribution information server 20 receives the distribution information acquisition request from the IP communication network 14 via the router 12, the distribution information server 20 determines the service area based on the IP address of the relay source (router 18) included in the request, The latest distribution information for the service area is sent back to the broadcast receiving device 16 as the request source. Thereby, the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 acquires the latest distribution information corresponding to the current service area (step S404).

  Thereafter, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 compares the region code in the distribution information acquired this time with the region code in the existing distribution information stored in the nonvolatile memory (step S405). If the two area codes match in this comparison, it means that the multicast broadcast can be received in response to the reception request started in step S403. Therefore, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 does not change the multicast code as it is. Broadcast reception is continued (step S409). In this case, in FIG. 5, the screen is switched from A which is waiting to receive multicast broadcast (black screen) to E which is the broadcast screen of the channel selected last time.

  On the other hand, if the two area codes do not match, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 considers that the service area to which the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 belongs has been changed, and stops receiving the multicast broadcast (step S406), the display processing unit 106 so as to display the channel setting confirmation screen (B in FIG. 5) for notifying the user that the channel corresponding to the current service area to be reset is acquired in step S404. To control. On this channel setting confirmation screen, a message for prompting the user to input the consent to reset the channel is displayed. The user operates the key input unit 108 or the remote controller (remote controller) 109, etc. You can enter your will of consent.

  When a user's intention to reset the channel is input, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 performs a process of acquiring channel information corresponding to the area. In this channel information acquisition process, for example, a server that distributes channel information is provided, and the broadcast receiving device 16 requests the server for an income request for the channel information including the area code included in the latest distribution information. Is transmitted via the IP communication network 14 and the response is acquired.

  When the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 acquires the channel information corresponding to the current region, the control unit 107 resets the broadcast channel based on the channel information and uses the latest distribution information acquired this time to store the existing nonvolatile memory. The distribution information is updated (step S407). C in FIG. 5 is an example of a screen indicating that channel information acquisition and resetting are being executed.

  When the update of the distribution information is completed and the resetting of the broadcasting channel is completed, the contents of the resetting of the broadcasting channel are displayed on the screen (D in FIG. 5). Thereafter, it is possible to make a multicast broadcast reception request using the latest distribution information corresponding to the current installation area stored in the nonvolatile memory (step S408).

  Thus, according to this embodiment, when the broadcast receiving device 16 is turned on, the latest distribution information corresponding to the current installation area is acquired, and the existing distribution information in the nonvolatile memory is automatically updated. Can do. In this embodiment, the distribution information update process is performed after making a multicast broadcast reception request for the last selected broadcast channel, so that if there is no change in the installation area of the broadcast receiving device 16 The waiting time from turning on the power to watching the broadcast will not be prolonged. This process is not limited to being performed when the power is turned on, and may be performed at an arbitrary timing.

  Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  This embodiment is characterized in the operation when the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 is turned on when the organization of the IP broadcast in the service area is changed. The change of IP broadcast organization refers to the case where the increase or decrease of the broadcast channel, the change of assignment of TS_ID to the broadcast channel, or the like is performed.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the distribution information update process when the IP broadcast organization is changed.

  Note that the broadcast receiving device 16 stores the information of the last selected broadcast channel in the nonvolatile memory of the memory unit 112 separately from the distribution information.

  When the broadcast receiving device 16 is turned on, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 reads the information of the broadcast channel selected last time from the non-volatile memory of the memory unit 112 and stores it in the RAM of the memory unit 112. Store (step S601). Subsequently, the control unit 107 reads the distribution information from the nonvolatile memory of the memory unit 112 and stores it in the RAM of the memory unit 112 (Step S602).

  Next, the control unit 107 generates a multicast broadcast reception request for the router 18 based on the multicast address and the transmission source port number in the stream distribution information corresponding to the broadcast channel selected last last time, and performs communication. The processor 111 is controlled to transmit this multicast broadcast reception request to the router 18 (step S603).

  Next, the control unit 107 generates a request for acquiring distribution information from the distribution information server 20 based on the program information server URL included in the distribution information, and controls the communication processing unit 111 to control the distribution information. An acquisition request is sent to the IP communication network 14 through the router 18. When the distribution information server 20 receives a distribution information acquisition request from the IP communication network 14 via the router 12, the distribution information server 20 determines the service area of the request source based on the IP address of the relay source (router 18) included in the request. Then, the latest distribution information for this service area is returned to the broadcast receiving device 16 which is the request source. Thereby, the broadcast receiving apparatus 16 acquires the latest distribution information corresponding to the current installation area (step S604).

  Next, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 determines whether a broadcast signal has been received in response to a multicast broadcast reception request (step S605). When the broadcast signal can be received, the control unit 107 checks the TS_ID added to the received multicast broadcast transport stream, and this TS_ID is stored in the non-volatile memory. It is determined whether or not it matches TS_ID in the stream distribution information corresponding to the broadcast channel (step S606). If the TS_IDs match, the control unit 107 then matches the distribution information corresponding to the current service area acquired in step S604 and the existing distribution information stored in the nonvolatile memory in all contents. Whether or not (step S607). If the distribution information matches, it is assumed that there is no change in the organization of the IP broadcast, and the reception of the multicast broadcast is continued as it is (step S608). In this case, in FIG. 5, the screen is switched from A which is in a broadcast reception waiting state (black screen) to E which is the broadcast screen of the channel selected last time. If the distribution information does not match, the existing distribution information in the nonvolatile memory is updated with the latest distribution information acquired in step S604 (step S609). This case indicates that there is no change in the broadcast channel to which multicast broadcast reception is requested, but there is a change in another broadcast channel in the same service area.

  Next, a case where multicast broadcast cannot be received based on the determination in step S605 will be described. In the determination in step S605, since it is determined whether or not the multicast broadcast has been received in response to the multicast broadcast reception request of the broadcast channel selected last last time, it is determined that the broadcast channel cannot be received. Means that has stopped. In this case, the control unit 107 stops the multicast broadcast reception request (step S610), and prompts the user to input through the screen that the broadcast signal cannot be received from the requested broadcast channel (step S610). S611). The user operates the key input unit 108, the remote controller (remote controller) 109, etc., and inputs the intention of consent.

  When an intention of consent is input from the user, the control unit 107 updates the existing distribution information in the nonvolatile memory with the latest distribution information acquired in step S604 (step S612). Thereafter, the control unit 107 generates a multicast broadcast reception request again based on the updated distribution information, controls the communication processing unit 111, and transmits the multicast broadcast reception request to the router 18 (step S1). S613). Thereafter, the processing is restarted from the confirmation of multicast broadcast reception in step S605.

  Next, although the multicast broadcast can be received in the determination of step S606, TS_ID added to the transport stream of the received multicast broadcast is the stream distribution information assigned to the broadcast channel selected last time. A case where it does not match the TS_ID in the middle will be described. Here, the TS_ID does not match, although there is a combination of the multicast address assigned to the broadcast channel and the source port number, but the TS_ID embedded in the transport stream of the multicast broadcast distributed by the broadcast channel is not the same. Means changed.

  In this case, the control unit 107 of the broadcast receiving device 16 stops the multicast broadcast reception request that continues from step S603 (step S614), and the requested broadcast channel is changed through the screen as shown in FIG. The user is notified of this (step S615). Thereafter, the control unit 107 updates the existing distribution information in the nonvolatile memory with the latest distribution information acquired in step S604 (step S612), and multicast broadcast to the router 18 based on the updated distribution information. Is generated again, the communication processing unit 111 is controlled, and the reception request for the multicast broadcast is transmitted to the router 18 (step S613). Thereafter, the processing is restarted from the confirmation of multicast broadcast reception in step S605.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, when the broadcast receiving device 16 is turned on, it detects that the organization of the IP broadcast is changed, acquires the latest distribution information, and stores the non-volatile memory. Existing distribution information can be automatically updated. Also, in this embodiment, since the distribution information update process is started after making a multicast broadcast reception request for the last selected broadcast channel, if there is no change in the organization of the IP broadcast, the power supply The waiting time from launching to watching the broadcast will not be prolonged. This process is not limited to being performed when the power is turned on, and may be performed at an arbitrary timing.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a figure which shows the example of whole structure of the IP broadcast system for every service area based on one embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the basic composition of the broadcast receiving apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure of delivery information. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the distribution information update process in the broadcast receiver of FIG. It is a figure which shows the user interface screen in the delivery information update process shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the distribution information update process when the organization of IP broadcast is changed. It is a figure which shows the user interface screen in the delivery information update process shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

10-1,..., 10-n IP broadcast transmission server 12 router 14 IP communication network 16 broadcast receiving device 18 router 20 distribution information server 107 control unit 111 communication processing unit 112 memory unit

Claims (6)

A distribution information storage unit for storing distribution information necessary for receiving a multicast broadcast distributed to an IP communication network;
A channel selection history storage unit for storing information of the last selected broadcast channel;
After transmitting the multicast broadcast reception request based on the broadcast channel information stored in the channel selection history storage unit and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit, the distribution information is transmitted from the IP communication network. The acquired distribution information is compared with the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit, and if there is a mismatch, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit with the acquired distribution information And a distribution information updating unit for updating   When the acquired distribution information and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit do not match, the distribution information update unit notifies the user that the update is necessary and inputs an update instruction from the user The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit is updated with the acquired distribution information. The distribution information includes a region code indicating the service area,
The distribution information update unit compares the region code in the distribution information acquired from the IP communication network with the region code in the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit, The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in the case of mismatch, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit is updated with the acquired distribution information. The distribution information includes transport stream identification information assigned for each multicast broadcast,
The distribution information update unit is stored in the distribution information storage unit with the latest distribution information acquired from the IP communication network when the identification information of the transport stream is different between the requested multicast broadcast and the received multicast broadcast. The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the existing distribution information is updated.   The distribution information update unit updates the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit with the latest distribution information acquired from the IP communication network when the requested multicast broadcast cannot be received. The broadcast receiving apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The broadcast receiving device stores a distribution information storage unit that stores distribution information necessary for receiving a multicast broadcast distributed to the IP communication network for each service area, and a selection unit that stores information on the last selected broadcast channel. A station history storage unit,
After transmitting the multicast broadcast reception request based on the broadcast channel information stored in the channel selection history storage unit and the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit, the distribution information is transmitted from the IP communication network. The acquired distribution information is compared with the distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit, and if there is a mismatch, the existing distribution information stored in the distribution information storage unit with the acquired distribution information The distribution information updating method of the broadcast receiving apparatus, characterized by updating

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