KR20020062096A - A system for providing links to multimedia contents in an Internet and a method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention enables users of the Internet to easily access specific multimedia contents that they desire, and periodically updates the link information to specific multimedia contents to ensure accessibility to the specific multimedia contents. In order to provide a link information providing system and a method for providing multimedia information, a link information providing system for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, comprising: at least one provided to be displayed by a web browser, provided on the Internet A default web page containing link information to the multimedia content of the device; A web page operating module capable of adding, changing or removing the configuration and contents of the default web page; A robot operation module which interacts with the web page operation module and controls a search robot to collect information about multimedia contents on the Internet periodically or from time to time in response to a preset search condition; A link information database for holding link information for the multimedia content; And a database operation module which receives link information to the multimedia content from the robot operation module and stores it in the link information database or updates the information of the link information database. A link information providing method for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, the method comprising: checking a search condition such as a search category and a search range set in advance by a user or a system operator; Instructing the search robot to perform a search according to the search condition described above; Importing a search result performed by the search robot; Updating a link information database to reflect the imported search result; A method of providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, the method comprising updating a predetermined default web page to reflect the imported search result to include new link information obtained by the search result.

Description

A system for providing links to multimedia contents in an Internet and a method

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system and method for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet. In particular, the present invention relates to multimedia on the Internet so that a user of an Internet television displaying a web page using a general television can easily access the multimedia content. A system for providing link information to content and a method thereof.

Recent advances in telecommunications networks have made it possible to display information stored in remote computer systems from other computers. The representative method is the World Wide Web (WWW) method, which is also referred to as "web", which means that when a plurality of computers are connected to various networks, The information is produced in the form of Hypertext markup language (HTML), and then the HTMLized information is transferred to another computer using the Hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), and the information is received. One computer decodes the HTMLized information using a so-called web browser and displays it in the form of a so-called web page.

The global communication network in which various communication protocols are implemented, including the World Wide Web method, is commonly referred to as "Internet" among the general public, and thus the same name is used here.

In the past, it was common to use a computer system such as a personal computer (PC), a workstation, or the like to access various information through the Internet. In recent years, however, as multimedia contents such as music and moving images can be transmitted from the Internet, apparatuses for accessing the Internet using televisions widely used in homes have been provided.

Representative of them is what is called "Internet set-top box", which is software and hardware for accessing the Internet, software and hardware for displaying various information received from the Internet, and a display device of the television (e.g., CRT). Internet access device equipped with software and hardware for driving. The Internet set-top box as described above is named in the sense that it is placed on the housing of the television to use the television for a special purpose. In addition, a television produced by integrating hardware and software having the same function as the Internet set-top box from the beginning has already been disclosed, which is referred to as Internet television.

The TV or Internet TV to which the above-described Internet set-top box is connected is an apparatus embodying the same technical idea in that it accesses the Internet to "navigate" the Internet and accesses the desired information. This is called.

On the other hand, in order to access information desired by a user through the Internet, it is common to access a search site such as www yahoo.com or www lycos.com and perform a search using a search engine provided by them. However, these search sites only provide a list of sites that provide content that includes the keywords that the user entered into the search engine and the links they can access, so that the search results actually contain the information they were looking for. There was a problem that it was difficult to know whether or not.

In particular, for a user conducting an internet search using internet television, it is not only time-consuming but also cumbersome to determine whether desired information has been searched by reading a search result in which only a large number of characters are displayed. In addition, the search result performed by the search engine of the search site is a one-time one, and it is inconvenient to perform the same procedure again in order to search for the same information later. In particular, in the case of Internet TV mainly for watching multimedia content such as a movie or music video, there is a problem that it is very difficult to find the desired multimedia content through the search site as described above.

In particular, even when bookmarked specific multimedia contents are bookmarked in a browser for Internet TV of the Internet, the link information is changed as the information provider who provided the multimedia contents frequently updates his site. There was also a problem of not accessing the multimedia content.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a system for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet so that a user of the Internet can easily access a specific multimedia content desired by the user. To provide a way.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a system and method for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet which guarantees accessibility to specific multimedia content by periodically updating link information to specific multimedia content.

1 is a conceptual block diagram of a system for providing link information to multimedia contents on the Internet according to the present invention;

2 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a link information providing method of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a search operation in the link information providing method of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of an interface operation with a user of an Internet television to which the present invention is applied.

* Explanation of symbols in the main parts of the drawings

100: link information providing system 102: default web page

104: web page operation module 106: robot operation module

108: database operation module 110: link information database

112: search robot 130: the Internet

140: multimedia content

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention, in the link information providing system for providing link information to the multimedia content on the Internet, is set to be displayed by a web browser, at least one multimedia content provided on the Internet A default web page containing link information; A web page operating module capable of adding, changing or removing the configuration and contents of the default web page; A robot operation module which interacts with the web page operation module and controls a search robot to collect information about multimedia contents on the Internet periodically or from time to time in response to a preset search condition; A link information database for retaining link information to the multimedia content, and a database operation module for receiving link information to the multimedia content from the robot operation module and storing the link information in the link information database or updating the information in the link information database. Provided is a link information providing system for multimedia content on the Internet.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a link information providing method for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, comprising: checking a search condition such as a search category and a search range preset by a user or a system operator; Instructing the search robot to perform a search according to the search condition described above; Importing a search result performed by the search robot; Updating a link information database to reflect the imported search result; A method of providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, the method comprising updating a predetermined default web page to reflect the imported search result to include new link information obtained by the search result.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of a link information providing system and a method for providing multimedia content on the Internet according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a conceptual block diagram of a link information providing system 100 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a "link information providing system") to multimedia content on the Internet according to the present invention. As shown, the link information providing system 100 of the present invention is set to be initially displayed by a browser 120 provided in an Internet television (not shown), and provides link information to a plurality of multimedia contents. A default web page 102 is included. The default web page 102 is a web page that is first displayed when the user initiates the operation of the Internet television. After the default web page 102 is displayed, the user enters an address of another web site or You can navigate to other web pages by clicking on specific links included in the default web page 102. The default web page 102 is preferably written in conventional HTML, language, but the programming language used is not particularly limited. In addition, the default web page may also be accessed by its own unified resource locator in the same manner as a general web page.

In addition, the link information providing system 100 further includes a web page operation module 104 that can add, change or remove the configuration and contents of the default web page 102. The web page operation module 104 deletes link information that is not particularly accessible from the contents of the default web page 102, and replaces the new link information when there is new link information corresponding to the deleted link information. 'Link information' means information such as a URL (Unified Resource Locator) address that can be accessed to a specific web site, web page or specific content.

In addition, the link information providing system 100 interacts with the web page operation module 104 and performs a search robot to collect information about multimedia contents on the Internet periodically or from time to time in response to a search condition set by a user. It further includes a robot operation module 106 for controlling (112). The robot operation module 106 instructs the search robot 112 when and to what extent the search is to be performed according to the search condition set by the user, and also monitors whether the search condition set by the user has changed. do.

The link information providing system 100 may include the search robot 112 as described above. In general, a search robot, unlike general search engines operated by the above-described search site, is a new kind of collecting content containing specific information desired by a user and providing the result to the user as a processed search result. Search engine. The search robot is also called a search agent or a robot agent, and the technical concept thereof is already well known in the technical field of the present invention, and thus the details thereof are omitted. In particular, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the search robot 112 is not provided in itself in the link information providing system 100 of the present invention, a method of periodically or often using the external search robot 112. It may be implemented as.

Furthermore, the link information providing system 100 of the present invention receives the link information database 110 holding the link information to the multimedia content and the link information to the multimedia content from the robot operation module 106. The apparatus may further include a database operation module 108 that stores the information in the link information database 110 or updates the information in the link information database 110.

In particular, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the link information providing system 100 is a content database for storing the specific multimedia content itself selected by the user among the multimedia content stored in the link information database 110 in the link information It may further include (not shown). This is for displaying a user's favorite multimedia content at higher speed.

Next, referring to Figures 2 and 3, the operation of the link information providing system 100 of the present invention will be described. 2 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of the link information providing method of the present invention. When the system is started, the robot operation module 106 checks a search category set by a user or a system operator (step S202). The search category may be, for example, a category on a content such as a movie, a drama, a music video, a song, or a category on a multimedia content such as .mpg or .ra. In addition, the search category may be set by the system operator for the user, or may be arbitrarily set by the user according to his or her preference, as described below. Of course, the user or operator can change the set category.

Next, the robot operation module 106 checks the set search range (step S204). The search range may be set to search only new content within a time period, for example, within one week, or may be set to search for content provided by sites in Korea, Asia, or the world. The search range may also be set or changed by a user or an operator.

Next, the robot operation module 106 instructs the search robot 112 to perform a search within the above category and range (step S206). An embodiment of a search operation by the search robot 112 will be described later with reference to FIG. 3.

Next, the robot operation module 106 imports a search result performed by the search robot 112 (step S208). The imported search result is delivered to the database operation module 108, and the database operation module 108 updates the link information database 110 to reflect the search result (step S210).

In addition, the imported search result is also transmitted to the webpage operation module 104, so that the webpage operation module 104 updates the default webpage 102 to include new link information based on the search result. (Step S212).

By the above operation, the user of the Internet TV on which the default web page 102 is displayed can directly access the multimedia content desired by the user.

Next, referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a search operation performed by the search robot 112. The search robot 112, in response to receiving a search instruction including information about a search category and a range from the robot operation module 106, performs a keyword search corresponding to the search category and the range (step S302). . The keyword search is only one example of various search methods that the search robot 112 can perform, and the technical idea of the present invention is not limited thereto.

Next, link information to the multimedia content is extracted from the search result by the keyword search (step S304). Extraction of the link information can be easily performed by parsing a conventional HTML document.

Next, it is determined whether the extracted link information exists in the link information database 110 (step S306). If present, the link information is removed from the search result (step S310). If not present, the link information is stored in the search result (step S308). The above steps are performed on all link information extracted from the search results.

In addition, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the steps S306, S308 and S310 may be implemented to be performed by the robot operation module 106.

Next, an embodiment of the interface operation with the user of the Internet television will be described with reference to FIG. As shown, when the operation of the Internet television is started, the webpage operation module 104 allows the user to select whether to watch multimedia content or to set a new search condition. If the user has chosen to watch the multimedia content (step S402), the webpage operation module 104 displays the default webpage 102 (step S404).

Next, a category relating to various multimedia contents included in the default webpage 102 is selected (step S406), and specific multimedia contents included in the selected category are selected (step S408). Next, the webpage operation module 104 supplies the multimedia content based on link information to the selected multimedia content (step S410).

On the other hand, if the user chooses to set a new search condition (step S412), the webpage operation module 104 causes the user to set a new search category (step S414), and then the new local and / or The temporal search range is set (step S416).

According to a system and method for providing link information to multimedia contents on the Internet according to the present invention, a user who wants to access multimedia contents on the Internet by including link information for various contents and multimedia contents in a predetermined default web page is provided. Allows users to quickly access the link information to the multimedia content they want without having to search for it directly.

Furthermore, according to the system and method for providing link information to multimedia contents on the Internet according to the present invention, it is possible to ensure accessibility to specific multimedia contents by periodically updating link information to specific multimedia contents.

The above-described technical idea of the present invention is particularly useful for a user using Internet television, but a user using a general computer system can also enjoy the advantages of the present invention by simply accessing the default web page. The technical idea of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited to internet television.

Claims (8)

In the link information providing system for providing link information to the multimedia content on the Internet, A default web page configured to be displayed by a web browser, the default web page including link information to at least one multimedia content provided on the Internet; A web page operating module capable of adding, changing or removing the configuration and contents of the default web page; A robot operation module which interacts with the web page operation module and controls a search robot to collect information about multimedia contents on the Internet periodically or from time to time in response to a preset search condition; A link information database for holding link information for the multimedia content; And And a database operation module for receiving link information to the multimedia content from the robot operation module and storing the link information in the link information database or updating the information in the link information database. The method of claim 1, Search robot controlled by the robot operation module is a link information providing system to the multimedia content on the Internet that is an external search robot. The method of claim 1, The search robot controlled by the robot operation module is a search robot built on its own. The method of claim 1, The default web page is A system for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, which is a web page included in a specific site on the Internet, which can be accessed by its own unified resource locator. The method of claim 1, The robot operation module instructs the search robot 112 when and to what extent the search is to be performed according to a search condition set by the user, and monitors whether the set search condition is changed to multimedia content on the Internet. Link Information Provision System. The method of claim 1, And a content database for storing the specific multimedia content selected by the user among the multimedia contents in which the link information is stored in the link information database. In the link information providing method for providing link information to multimedia content on the Internet, Checking a search condition such as a search category and a search range preset by a user or a system operator; Instructing the search robot to perform a search according to the search condition described above; Importing a search result performed by the search robot; Updating a link information database to reflect the imported search result; Updating a predetermined default web page to reflect the imported search result to include new link information obtained by the search result. The method of claim 7, wherein Importing a search result performed by the search robot, Extracting link information to multimedia content from a search result by the search robot; Determining whether the extracted link information exists in the link information database; Removing the link information from the search result when it is determined that the information exists in the determining step; And And if it is determined that the information does not exist in the determining step, preserving the link information in the search result.