KR20050073004A - Device and method for auto-allocating channel number - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for automatically setting a broadcast channel to exclude a scrambled channel when automatically setting a channel. The apparatus for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a scramble determination unit for determining whether scramble bits are present among received broadcast signals, a memory unit for storing a channel for transmitting a signal having scramble bits as a scramble channel, and a scramble The channel number is mapped to a channel without bits and a channel into which video and audio data are input among scrambled channels, and the determination of whether video and audio data is input to the scrambled channel is repeated every specific time interval or when a specific event occurs on the remote controller. Including the microcomputer to change the channel setting according to the determination result.

According to the present invention, the device determines whether there is scramble control data for a scrambled channel at a certain time interval or when a specific event of the remote controller is generated, and the receiving apparatus automatically determines a corresponding scrambled channel without user intervention on the scrambled channel. Channel number can be set or deleted.

Description

Device and method for automatically setting broadcasting channel {Device and method for auto-allocating channel number}

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for automatically setting a broadcast channel, and more particularly, to perform a channel setting operation by excluding a scrambled channel when the channel is automatically set, and to a corresponding channel according to whether a user subscribes to a paid channel later. An apparatus and method for automatically setting a broadcast channel for automatically reflecting a channel number setting for an apparatus.

In general, an apparatus and method for automatically setting a broadcast channel is to store a channel currently broadcasted by a broadcasting station among a number of channels and provide only a channel stored through the automatic channel setting to a user.

1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an apparatus for automatically setting a general broadcast channel.

The illustrated device includes a tuner 110, an image detector 120, a synchronization detector 130, and a microcomputer 140.

When the broadcast signal receiving apparatus requests channel automatic setting, the microcomputer 140 outputs the channel tuning frequency to the tuner 110 and the tuner 110 tunes and outputs a signal corresponding to the channel tuning frequency.

The image detector 120 receives the signal tuned by the tuner 110, detects an image signal, and outputs the image signal to the synchronization detector 130. The synchronization detector 130 outputs a horizontal synchronization signal from the input signal. It detects and outputs it to the microcomputer 140.

The microcomputer 140 determines whether there is a synchronization signal according to the tuning frequency, and if there is a synchronization signal, the micom 140 maps and stores the channel to a serial number and outputs the tuning frequency of the next channel to the tuner 110. If there is no synchronization signal, the channel outputs the tuning frequency of the next channel to the tuner 110 without storing the channel.

In the conventional automatic channel setting, it is determined whether the channel is stored according to the presence or absence of the synchronization signal loaded on the tuned frequency, so that all channels carrying the synchronization signal are stored. At this time, the scrambled channel is also excluded from the automatic channel setting process and is mapped to a predetermined channel number together with the general channel and provided to the user.

In order to watch the scrambled pay broadcast, the user must pay a subscription fee, in which case the user is provided with an encryption key that allows the scrambled signal to be descrambled. The conditional access device on the receiving side can descramble the scrambled signal using the encryption key and play it back on a normal screen. However, the scrambled signal is reproduced as it is for the channel that does not pay the subscription fee, so that the user cannot watch the broadcast on the channel as a normal video. Therefore, if the scrambled channel is reflected in the automatic channel setting process without filtering, the user must manually remove the channel number to which the scrambled channel is mapped.

According to the related art for overcoming the above problem, when the channel is automatically set, the scrambled channel is determined by searching for a specific field in which the scrambled data is recorded among the broadcast signals received by the receiver and determining the scrambled channel if there is scrambled control data. A channel automatic setting operation is performed on the remaining channels except for the separated scrambled channels, and the scrambled channels are grouped separately so as to be displayed only at the request of the user.

However, even if the user has paid subscription to the channel among the unscrambled scrambled channels, the scrambled channel may be descrambled and provided to the user normally. According to the conventional technology, in order to map the channel number to the channel for which the user has completed the paid subscription as described above, the user manually specifies the channel number for the corresponding channel or automatically sets up the channel again for all channels including the existing general channel. It was inconvenient to do the work.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to determine the presence or absence of scramble control data for the scrambled channel at a certain time interval or a specific event of the remote control, the user scrambled channel is changed or not To provide an apparatus and method for automatically setting the channel number for.

As a technical means for achieving the above object, the apparatus for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a scramble determination unit that determines whether a scramble bit is present among received broadcast signals, and a signal having a scramble bit present as a result of the determination. A memory unit for storing a channel to be transmitted as a scrambled channel, and a channel number for a channel without the scrambled bit and a channel into which video and audio data are input among the scrambled channels, and when a specific time interval or a specific event occurs on the remote controller, And a microcomputer for changing the channel setting according to the determination result by repeating whether the video and audio data are input to the stored scrambled channel.

In addition, the method for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises the steps of determining the presence or absence of scrambled bits of the received broadcast signal, and storing the channel for transmitting a signal having the scrambled bit as a scrambled channel as a result of the determination, Mapping a channel number for a channel without scramble bits and a channel into which video and audio data are input, and for each stored time of the scrambled channel or a specific event of the remote controller, the video and audio data for the stored scrambled channel. Repeated determination of the presence or absence of the channel is made according to the determination result.

In general, in order to watch a scrambled pay broadcast, a user is provided with an encryption key from a broadcast provider that pays a certain amount and descrambles the scrambled signal. For example, smart cards provided to paying subscribers for satellite broadcasting are recorded with limited reception characteristics (e.g., viewing authority, reception area limitation, age limit, etc.) of the broadcast to be received. When the condition of the conditional access characteristics recorded in the scrambled signal received by the receiver coincides with the contents recorded in the smart card, the smart card provides the encryption key to the receiver, and the receiver scrambles using the encryption key. The decoded signal can be descrambled.

Hereinafter, an apparatus and method for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a block diagram showing an apparatus for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The tuner 210 tunes and outputs a signal corresponding to a channel tuning frequency.

The image detector 220 receives a signal tuned by the tuner and detects an image signal.

The sync detector 230 detects a horizontal sync signal from the detected video signal and outputs the horizontal sync signal to the microcomputer 240.

The microcomputer 240 determines whether there is a synchronization signal according to the tuning frequency, and stores the channel having the synchronization signal in the memory unit 260 and drives the scramble determination unit 250 for the corresponding channel. If the channel is ignored, the tuning frequency of the next channel is output to the tuner 210. In addition, the microcomputer 240 determines whether video and audio data are input through the scrambled channel stored in the memory unit 260 by the scramble determination unit 250 at a certain time interval or when a specific event of the remote controller is generated.

The scramble determination unit 250 extracts a field in which a bit regarding scramble is located among channels where a synchronization signal is detected according to a request of the microcomputer 240 and determines whether a scramble bit exists in the corresponding field. According to the determination result, the scrambled channel and the normal channel are each grouped and stored in the memory unit 260.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a process of automatically setting an initial channel.

When the channel automatic setting request is made, the tuner 210 tunes a channel for each frequency (S110).

The image detector 220 detects and outputs an image signal from the channel signal tuned as a result of the tuning, and the synchronization detector 230 receives the detected image signal to detect the presence or absence of the synchronization signal (S120).

As a result of the detection, if there is a synchronization signal, the scramble determination unit 250 extracts a field in which the scramble bit is located in the image signal (S130) and searches whether there is a scramble bit in the corresponding position (S140). If there is a scramble bit in the search result, this is a scrambled channel that can be viewed only by the corresponding channel subscriber. Therefore, the microcomputer 240 stores the corresponding channel in the memory unit 260 to group only the scrambled channels separately (S150).

On the other hand, if there is no scramble bit as a result of the determination on the scramble bit (S140), since this is a broadcast channel that the user can normally watch, the microcomputer 240 performs a channel automatic setting operation on the corresponding channel to map a predetermined channel number (S170). And store it in the memory unit 260.

In the case of a channel subscribed to by the user among the scrambled channels, the user's conditional access device uses a cryptographic key provided from a broadcast provider so that video and audio data transmitted through the scrambled channel can be transmitted to the user's TV. 240 may automatically set a channel for the corresponding channel. However, in the case of a scrambled channel to which the user does not subscribe, the video and audio data are not delivered to the user's TV and are blocked in advance, and thus are excluded from the channel automatic setting target (S160).

After the automatic channel setting is completed for all channels, the user can change the channel to be watched by the channel number mapped to each channel. However, even after automatic channel setting is completed, it may be necessary to delete, change or add channel numbers for some channels. For example, when a user newly subscribes to a paid channel or withdraws from an existing paid channel, a channel number newly assigned or allocated to each channel must be deleted.

Therefore, the receiver automatically determines the paid channel for which the subscription status has changed and deletes the number assigned to the channel or maps the number to a new channel.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of newly mapping a channel number to a scrambled channel whose subscription is changed according to an embodiment of the present invention.

After the automatic channel setting is completed, when a specific event of the remote controller occurs (S210) (for example, when there is a user operation such as a power button or a channel change button of the remote controller), the microcomputer 240 stores each of the memory units 260. By re-receiving a part of the broadcast signal of the scrambled channel (S220), it is determined whether there is a change in the input of video and audio data through each channel (S230), and the existing channel setting is changed for the channel having the result of the determination. (S240).

For example, among the scrambled channels stored in the first memory unit 260, a low signal is low for a channel for inputting video and audio data to the user's TV, and a channel for which no video and audio data is input for the user's TV. When the high signal high is output to the memory unit 260, the memory unit 260 generates a bit value indicating whether video and audio data of the corresponding channel are normally input to the user's TV through each of the first grouped scrambled channels. Save it together.

Thereafter, when a specific event of the remote controller occurs, the process of FIG. 4 is repeated to determine a bit change indicating whether video and audio data are input to each of the grouped scrambled channels. Since the channel whose bit change is changed from the high value to the low value is the channel that the user has completed the paid subscription, the channel number is newly assigned to the corresponding channel, and the channel whose bit change is changed from the low value to the high value is paid by the user. Since the channel is withdrawn, the channel number mapped to the channel is automatically deleted.

In addition, the existing state is maintained for channels without bit change. Therefore, even if there is no user's special intervention in setting the channel number for the scrambled channel, the receiving device may automatically assign or delete the channel number.

In addition, the above process may be performed not only when a specific event of the remote controller occurs but also at a specific time interval set in the microcomputer 240.

Although the present invention has been described in detail above, those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains may variously modify the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. It is apparent that the present invention may be modified or modified. Therefore, a simple change according to an embodiment of the present invention will not be possible without departing from the technology of the present invention.

As described above, according to the present invention, the scramble bit for the scrambled channel may be determined at a predetermined time interval or when a specific event of the remote controller is generated, so that the user can automatically set or delete the channel number for the scrambled channel. .

1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an apparatus for automatically setting a general broadcast channel.

2 is a block diagram showing an apparatus for automatically setting a broadcast channel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a process of automatically setting an initial channel.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of newly mapping a channel number to a scrambled channel whose subscription is changed according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols on main parts of the drawings>

210: tuner 220: video detector

230: synchronization detection unit 240: microcomputer

250: scramble determination unit 260: memory unit

Claims (4)

A scramble determination unit determining whether scramble bits are present among the received broadcast signals; A memory unit storing a channel for transmitting a signal having a scramble bit as a scrambled channel as a result of the determination; And The channel number is mapped to the channel without the scramble bit and the channel into which the video and audio data are input, and the video and audio data are stored with respect to the stored scrambled channel at a specific time interval or whenever a specific event of the remote controller is generated. And a microcomputer for changing the channel setting according to the determination result by repeating the determination of the presence or absence of the input. The method of claim 1, The change of the channel setting is a change to delete the channel number to which the video and audio data is input among the channels in which the video and audio data are input or not, and the channel to which the video and audio data is not input is changed. The apparatus for automatically setting a broadcast channel, characterized in that the change maps a channel number. Determining the presence or absence of a scramble bit among the received broadcast signals; Storing a channel for transmitting a signal having a scramble bit as a scrambled channel as a result of the determination; Mapping a channel number to a channel free of the scrambled bit and a channel into which video and audio data among the scrambled channels are input; And Repeating the determination of whether the video and audio data are input to the stored scrambled channel at a specific time interval or at a specific event of the remote controller, and changing a channel setting according to the determination result. Auto setup method. The method of claim 3, wherein The change of the channel setting is a change to delete the channel number to which the video and audio data is input among the channels in which the video and audio data are input or not, and the channel to which the video and audio data is not input is changed. The broadcast channel automatic setting method characterized in that the change to map the channel number.