JP5656954B2 - Viewing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a viewing device, and more particularly, to a viewing device driven by a battery, for example.

An example of this type of device is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This conventional apparatus captures music data from an external device such as a PC, stores the captured music data, and reproduces the stored music data. Electric power for such operation is supplied from a built-in battery. When the remaining battery level is less than or equal to the threshold value, playback of the entire music is ensured by slowing the playback speed in a specific section of the music, for example, an interlude section.
JP 2006-21807 A [02J 7/00]

  However, Patent Document 1 discloses a policy for ensuring the reproduction of music stored in advance, but does not disclose any policy for ensuring viewing of a broadcast program.

  Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a viewing apparatus that can ensure viewing of a broadcast program in a state where the remaining battery level is low.

  Power for operating the viewing device is supplied by a battery. The first broadcast program currently broadcast is recorded by the first recording means in response to the recording operation, and is displayed by the display means only when the recording process of the first recording means is not executed.

  When the display process of the display means is executed, the first calculation means calculates the remaining broadcast time of the first broadcast program, and the second calculation means is the recordable time of the first recording means defined by the remaining battery level. Is calculated. The output means outputs a message when the remaining broadcast time calculated by the first calculation means and the recordable time calculated by the second calculation means satisfy the first condition.

  The power required for the display process of the display means is larger than the power required for the recording process of the first recording means. If the user performs a recording operation in response to the message, the display process of the display unit is interrupted, and the recording process of the first recording unit is started. By shifting to the recording process while the remaining battery level is sufficient, the remaining first broadcast program can be recorded, and even when the battery level is low, viewing of the first broadcast program is ensured. .

  Since the wireless communication means performs wireless communication in cooperation with the mobile communication network, in addition to watching the program, telephone conversation and data communication are possible.

  The reservation means reserves recording of the second broadcast program to be broadcast in the future, and the second recording means records the second broadcast program reserved by the reservation means. The third calculation means calculates the remaining amount of battery required for completing the recording process by the second recording means in response to the reservation process of the reservation means.

  The detecting means detects the remaining battery level during the period from the completion of the reservation by the reservation means to the start of recording by the second recording means. The prohibiting unit prohibits at least the operation of the wireless communication unit when the remaining amount detected by the detecting unit and the remaining amount calculated by the third calculating unit satisfy the second condition.

  Thus, when the remaining battery level is low, the recording process of the second recording means can be completed by giving priority to the recording process of the second recording means over the wireless communication, and the reserved second broadcast program can be viewed. Can also be secured.

A viewing device according to a first aspect of the present invention is a viewing device that operates with power supplied by a battery, and is a recording means for recording program data of a broadcast program based on a selected channel in response to a recording operation, a broadcast program When the broadcast program is being recorded by the display means and the recording means, and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted, when there is an operation to end the recording of the broadcast program, the broadcast by the recording means The recording means is provided with a control means for ending the recording of the program and restarting the display of the broadcast program . The program data is recorded by supplying the program data to the recording means, and the control means ends the recording of the broadcast program. when there is an operation that causes the display unit by returning the destination of the program data to the display unit to resume display of the broadcast program, a viewing device.
The viewing device according to the second invention is dependent on the first invention , and the control means records the broadcast program when the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted. This is a viewing device that continues recording and display interruption of a broadcast program when there is no operation to end recording.
A third aspect of the invention is a control method executed by a computer of a viewing apparatus that operates with power supplied by a battery and includes a display unit and a recording unit, wherein program data of a broadcast program based on a selected channel is obtained. A recording step of recording by the recording means in response to the recording operation, a display step of displaying the broadcast program by the display means, and the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means, and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted In this case, when there is an operation for ending the recording of the broadcast program, the recording unit includes a control step of ending the recording of the broadcast program and causing the display unit to resume the display of the broadcast program. The program data is recorded by supplying to the recording means, and in the control step, there is an operation to end the recording of the broadcast program. The, the display means by returning the destination of the program data to the display unit to resume display of the broadcast program, a control method.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, program data of a broadcast program based on a selected channel is recorded in response to a recording operation on a computer of a viewing apparatus that operates with power supplied by a battery and includes display means and recording means. A recording step of recording by the means, a display step of displaying the broadcast program by the display means, and when the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted, the recording of the broadcast program is performed. When there is an operation to end, recording of the broadcast program by the recording unit is ended, and the display unit is caused to execute a control step for restarting the display of the broadcast program. In the recording step, program data is supplied to the recording unit. In the control step, when there is an operation to end the recording of the broadcast program, the program data is recorded. On the display means by returning to the display means the destination of over data resumes the display of the broadcast program, a viewing program.

  According to this invention, viewing of a broadcast program can be ensured in a state where the remaining battery level is low.

  The above object, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of one Example of this invention. (A) is a graph showing the change in the remaining battery level in the viewing mode applied to the embodiment in FIG. 1, and (B) is the change in the remaining battery level in the reserved recording mode applied in the embodiment in FIG. It is a graph to show. It is a flowchart which shows a part of operation | movement of CPU applied to the FIG. 1 Example. It is a flowchart which shows a part of other operation | movement of CPU applied to the FIG. 1 Example. It is a flowchart which shows a part of other operation | movement of CPU applied to the FIG. 1 Example. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing yet another portion of behavior of the CPU applied to the embodiment in FIG. 1. It is a flowchart which shows a part of other operation | movement of CPU applied to the FIG. 1 Example.

  Referring to FIG. 1, the mobile phone 10 of this embodiment includes a key input device 24. When a call operation is performed by the key input device 24, the CPU 26 controls the wireless communication circuit 14 and the data processing circuit 16 to output a call signal. The output call signal is emitted from the antenna 12 and transmitted to the telephone of the other party via the mobile communication network. When the other party performs an incoming call operation, a call ready state is established.

  On the other hand, when the call signal from the other party is captured by the antenna 12, the wireless communication circuit 14 notifies the CPU 26 of the incoming call. The CPU 26 controls the LCD driver 32 to display the caller information described in the incoming call notification on the LCD monitor 34, and controls the wireless communication circuit 14 and the data processing circuit 16 to output a ring tone from the speaker 20. . When an incoming call operation is performed by the key input device 24, a call ready state is established.

  In the call ready state, the following processing is executed. The modulated audio signal (high frequency signal) sent from the other party is captured by the antenna 12, and the captured modulated audio signal is demodulated by the wireless communication circuit 14. The demodulated audio signal is subjected to DA conversion processing by the data processing circuit 16 to be converted into an incoming voice signal that is an analog signal. The converted received voice signal is input to the speaker 20, and the received voice is output from the speaker 20.

  The transmission voice signal taken in by the microphone 18 is converted into transmission voice data which is a digital signal by being subjected to AD conversion processing by the data processing circuit 16. The converted transmission voice data is subjected to a modulation process by the wireless communication circuit 14, thereby generating a modulated voice signal. The generated modulated audio signal is transmitted to the other party using the antenna 12 as described above.

  When the off-hook operation is performed by the key input device 24 after the call enabled state is established, or when the other party performs an off-hook operation, the state of the mobile phone 10 shifts from the call enabled state to the non-call state.

  As described above, a state in which the wireless communication circuit 14 and the data processing circuit 16 are in an activated state and can make and receive calls is referred to as a standby state.

  When a TV activation operation is performed by the key input device 24, the mobile phone 10 shifts to a viewing mode that is one of the TV modes. The CPU 26 starts supplying power to the TV receiving circuit 38 and the data processing circuit 40 and instructs the TV receiving circuit 38 to select an initial channel. The channel that was selected when the previous TV stop operation was performed is stored in the flash memory 22, and the TV receiving circuit 38 selects the stored channel as the initial channel.

  The TV receiving circuit 38 receives a high-frequency television signal through the antenna 36 and extracts an initial channel program signal from the received high-frequency television signal. The extracted program signal is demodulated and decoded by the data processing circuit 40, thereby generating program video data, program audio data, and EPG (Electronic Program Guide) data.

  The generated program video data is supplied to the LCD driver 32, the generated program audio data is supplied to the data processing circuit 16, and the generated EPG data is supplied to the CPU. The CPU 26 stores the given EPG data in the flash memory 22, instructs the LCD driver 32 to display the program video, and instructs the data processing circuit 16 to output the program audio.

  The LCD driver 32 drives the LCD monitor 34 according to the given program video data, whereby the program video is displayed on the LCD monitor 34. The data processing circuit 16 converts the given program audio data into a program audio signal, and inputs the converted program audio signal to the speaker 20. Thereby, the program sound is output from the speaker 20.

  When a channel change operation is performed by the key input device 24, the CPU 26 instructs the TV reception circuit 38 to execute tuning. The TV receiving circuit 38 changes the channel from which the program signal is to be extracted to a desired channel. Further, when a TV stop operation is performed by the key input device 24, the CPU 26 stops the supply of power to the TV receiving circuit 38 and the data processing circuit 40. As a result, the TV reception function is stopped.

  When a recording start operation is performed by the key input device 24 during TV viewing, the mobile phone 10 shifts from the viewing mode to the normal recording mode, which is another TV mode. The CPU 26 further starts supplying power to the recording processing circuit 42, and supplies the destination of the generated program video data and generated program audio data (hereinafter “program data”) from the LCD driver 32 and the data processing circuit 16. The recording processing circuit 42 is changed, and the recording processing circuit 42 is instructed to start recording the program data on the recording medium 44 (hereinafter referred to as “recording processing”). The power supply to the LCD driver 32 and the data processing circuit 16 is suppressed. As a result, the display of the program video and the output of the program audio (hereinafter “program display”) are interrupted and the recording process is started.

  Further, when the recording stop operation is performed by the key input device 24, the mobile phone 10 returns from the normal recording mode to the viewing mode. The CPU 26 releases the suppression of the power supply to the LCD driver 32 and the data processing circuit 16, returns the program data supply destination from the recording processing circuit 42 to the LCD driver 32 and the data processing circuit 16, and supplies the program data to the recording processing circuit 42. Stop supplying power. Thereby, the recording process is stopped and the program display is resumed.

  When a recording reservation operation is performed by the key input device 24, the mobile phone 10 shifts to a reserved recording mode which is another one of the TV modes, and the CPU 26 performs reservation setting. Specifically, the recording reservation information is generated based on the recording reservation operation, and the generated recording reservation information is stored in the flash memory 22. In the recording reservation information, the channel of the program to be recorded, the start time and the end time are described.

  This recording reservation operation is based on the EPG information extracted from the high-frequency television signal and stored in the flash memory 22 in the past. The missing EPG information can be downloaded from the Internet. Specifically, the data communication mode is selected by the key input device 24, and the wireless communication circuit 14 and the data processing circuit 16 are controlled to perform downloading. Alternatively, the channel, start time, and end time may be input one by one by operating the key input device 24.

  When the reservation setting is completed, the state of the mobile phone 10 becomes a standby state. Then, immediately before the start time described in the recording reservation information of the flash memory 22 arrives, for example one minute before, the CPU 26 starts supplying power to the TV receiving circuit 38, the data processing circuit 40, and the recording processing circuit 42. The TV receiving circuit 38 is instructed to select a channel described in the recording reservation information. When the channel selection processing by the TV receiving circuit 38 is completed and the start time comes, the CPU 26 instructs the recording processing circuit 42 to start the recording processing. Thereafter, when the end time described in the recording reservation information arrives, the CPU 26 stops supplying power to the TV receiving circuit 38, the data processing circuit 40, and the recording processing circuit 42. The reserved program is recorded in this way. When the recording of the reserved program is completed, the mobile phone 10 exits the reserved recording mode.

  By the way, in the mobile phone 10, power for operating the CPU 26, the wireless communication circuit 14, the TV receiving circuit 38 and other elements is supplied by the battery 30 through the power supply circuit 28. The power control as described above by the CPU 26 is performed via the power circuit 28. Furthermore, in each of the viewing mode and the reserved recording mode, the power supply circuit 28 detects the remaining amount of the battery 30, and the CPU 26 also performs the following power control based on the detection result.

  That is, in the viewing mode, the CPU 26 acquires the EPG information of the current program from the flash memory 22, and based on the acquired EPG information, the remaining broadcast time (= Trem) until the broadcast end time, that is, the current time Tcrnt and the current program. The difference from the broadcast end time Tend is calculated. Then, the calculated remaining time is set in the timer T, and the timer T is started. The value of the timer T, that is, the remaining broadcast time Trem is decremented as time elapses.

  The CPU 26 also repeatedly detects the remaining battery level through the power supply circuit 28, and calculates the recordable time (= Trec) based on the detection result. Note that the recordable time is obtained by dividing the remaining amount of the battery 30 by the power supplied to the recording processing circuit 42 by the battery 30. Then, the remaining broadcast time Trem and the recordable time Trec are compared, and if Trem ≦ Trec, a message is output through the LCD monitor 34 and / or the speaker 20. The message indicates that it is difficult to continue watching the current program until the end, and recording is recommended.

  When the recording start operation is performed according to the message, the recording process is started and the program display is interrupted as described above. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2A, the recording process is continued until the end time Tend of the current program, and viewing of the current program is ensured. In FIG. 2A, the current time Tcrnt coincides with the time when the recording start operation is performed, and the time Tbrd indicates the time when the remaining battery level should be zero when viewing is continued ignoring the message. .

  Note that the power control process for viewing as described above is also executed when a channel change operation is performed.

  On the other hand, in the reserved recording mode, the CPU 26 acquires EPG information of the reserved program from the flash memory 22, calculates the broadcast time (= Tprg) of the reserved program based on the acquired EPG information, and the calculated broadcast time Based on the above, the remaining battery level (= Bprg) required for recording the reserved program is further calculated.

  The CPU 26 also repeatedly detects the remaining battery level through the power supply circuit 28, compares the calculated remaining battery level with the detected remaining battery level, and performs standby setting if Brem ≦ Bprg.

  When the standby setting is performed, the power supply to the components other than the key input device 24 and the CPU 26 is stopped, and the power supply to the key input device 24 and the CPU 26 is also minimized. Therefore, even in the standby state, even the wireless communication function is stopped, and the CPU 26 only detects the standby release operation through the key input device 24.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 2B, the power consumption during the period from the standby transition time Tstby to the broadcast start time Tstrt is minimized (zero in the figure), and the scheduled recording process ends the scheduled program end time Tend. The result will continue until. In FIG. 2B, time Tbrd indicates the time when the remaining battery level should be zero when the standby setting is not performed.

  Specifically, in the TV mode, the CPU 26 controls the main task shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the viewing power control task shown in FIG. 5, and the recording reservation shown in FIG. 6 under the control of a multitask OS such as μITRON. A plurality of tasks including the power control task and the scheduled recording task shown in FIG. 7 are executed in parallel. A control program corresponding to these flowcharts is stored in the flash memory 22.

  Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, first, in step S1, it is determined whether or not the state of the mobile phone 10 is a standby state. If NO, the process proceeds to step S7. If “YES” in the step S1, the process shifts to a step S3 to determine whether or not a standby release operation is performed. When the standby cancel operation is performed by the key input device 24, YES is determined in step S3, and the process proceeds to step S5 to cancel the standby setting. Then, the process proceeds to step S7. If NO in step S3, the process returns to step S1.

  In step S7, it is determined whether or not there is a channel switching operation. If YES here, the process returns to step S1 through a series of processes in steps S11 and S13. In step S11, the TV receiving circuit 38 is controlled to perform tuning, and in step S13, the viewing power control task is restarted.

  If “NO” in the step S7, the process proceeds to a step S9 to determine whether or not there is a recording reservation operation, and if “YES” here, the process returns to the step S1 through a series of processes of the steps S15 to S19. In step S15, reservation setting is performed, in step S17, the power supply control task for recording reservation is restarted, and in step S19, the reserved recording task is restarted. The reservation setting process in step S15 includes a process of generating recording reservation information based on the result of the recording reservation operation and writing the generated recording reservation information in the flash memory 22.

  If “NO” in the step S9, the process proceeds to a step S21 to determine whether or not a recording start operation is performed. If “YES” here, the process returns to the step S1 through a series of processes of the steps S25 to S31. In step S25, the power supply circuit 28 is commanded to suppress power supply to the LCD driver 32, and the program display on the LCD monitor 34 is interrupted.

  In step S27, the recording processing circuit 42 is controlled to execute recording processing on the recording medium 44. In step S29, it is determined whether or not there is a recording stop operation. If NO here, the process returns to step S27, and if YES, the process proceeds to step S31. In step S31, the power supply circuit 28 is commanded to cancel the suppression of power supply to the LCD driver 32, and the program display on the LCD monitor 34 is resumed.

  If “NO” in the step S21, the process proceeds to a step S23 to determine whether or not there is a standby instruction (S73: described later), and if “YES” here, the process returns to the step S1 through the process of the step S33. In step S33, standby setting is performed. As a result, the amount of power supplied to each component by the power supply circuit 28 is minimized.

  If “NO” in the step S23, the process returns to the step S1 through the process of the step S35. In step S35, other processing such as downloading of EPG information is executed.

  The viewing power control task follows the flow of FIG. With reference to FIG. 5, first, EPG information of the current program is acquired from the flash memory 22 in step S41, and the remaining broadcast time Trem until the broadcast end time is calculated based on the acquired EPG information in the next step S43. In the next step S45, the calculated remaining broadcast time Trem is set in the timer T, and the timer T is started. Then, the process proceeds to step S47. As a result, the value of the timer T, that is, the remaining broadcast time Trem is decremented every unit time.

In step S47, the remaining battery level is detected through the power supply circuit 28, and the recordable time (= Trec) is calculated based on the detection result. In the next step S49, the calculated remaining broadcast time and the calculated recordable time are compared, and it is determined whether or not Trem ≦ Trec. If NO, that is, if Trem> Trec, the system waits for a predetermined time, for example, 1 minute in step S51, and returns to step S47. In addition,
If “YES” in the step S49, the process shifts to a step S53 to output a message recommending recording through the LCD monitor 34 and / or the speaker 20. After the message is output, this task is terminated.

  In the comparison in step S49, the calculated remaining broadcast time Trem is directly compared with the calculated recordable time Trec. For example, the time obtained by subtracting 1 minute from Trec (Trec-1). A certain margin may be given to the time, such as comparing Trem with Trem.

  The recording reservation power control task follows the flow of FIG. With reference to FIG. 6, first, EPG information of a reserved program is acquired from the flash memory 22 in step S61, and in the next step S63, a broadcast time (= Tprg) is calculated based on the acquired EPG information. In the next step S65, the remaining battery level (= Bprg) necessary for recording the reserved program is calculated based on the calculated broadcast time. Then, the process proceeds to step S67.

  In step S67, the current remaining battery level (= Brem) is detected through the power supply circuit. In the next step S69, the calculated remaining amount is compared with the detected remaining amount to determine whether or not Brem ≦ Bprg.

  If “YES” in the step S69, the process shifts to a step S73 to issue a standby instruction. When the main task performs standby setting according to the command, this task is terminated. If NO in step S69, that is, if Brem> Bprg, after waiting for a predetermined time, for example, 1 minute in step S71, the process returns to step S67.

  In the comparison in step S69, the calculated remaining amount Bprg is directly compared with the detected remaining amount Brem. For example, (Brem-1) is compared with Bprg. A certain margin may be given.

  The scheduled recording task follows the flow of FIG. Referring to FIG. 7, recording reservation information is first acquired from flash memory 22 in step S81, and in the next step S83, based on the acquired recording reservation information, whether or not one minute before the broadcast of the reserved program has started. Is determined. If “YES” here, the process proceeds to a step S85 to execute a preparation process. The preparation processing includes processing such as start of power supply to the TV receiving circuit 38 and the like, and tuning.

  When the preparation process is completed, the process proceeds to step S87, and it is determined whether or not the broadcast start time of the reserved program has come. If “YES” here, the recording process is executed in a step S89, and then it is determined whether or not the broadcast end time of the reserved program has come in a step S91. If “NO” in the step S91, the process returns to the step S89, and if “YES”, the task is ended.

  As is clear from the above, power for operating the mobile phone 10 of this embodiment is supplied by the battery 30. The current program being broadcast (first broadcast program) is recorded on the recording medium 44 in response to the recording operation, and is displayed on the LCD monitor 34 only when the recording process is not being executed (S21 to S31).

  When the display process is being executed, the CPU 26 repeatedly calculates the remaining broadcast time of the current program (S43, S45), and repeatedly calculates the recordable time defined by the remaining amount of the battery 30 (S47). When the calculated remaining broadcast time is less than the calculated recordable time, a message for prompting the recording operation is output (S53).

  The power required for the display process is larger than the power required for the recording process. If the user performs a recording operation in response to the message, the display process is interrupted and the recording process is started. By shifting to the recording process while the necessary battery level is sufficient, the remaining program can be recorded, and viewing of the current program is ensured even when the remaining battery level is low.

  When recording of a program to be broadcast in the future is reserved (S15), the reserved reserved program (second broadcast program) is recorded (S89). In response to the reservation process, the CPU 26 calculates the remaining amount of the battery 30 necessary for completing the reservation recording process (S65), and repeatedly detects the remaining amount of the battery 30 during the period from the completion of the reservation to the start of the reservation recording (S67). ). Then, when the detected remaining amount falls below the calculated remaining amount, processing other than reserved recording is prohibited (S73, S33).

  By stopping the wireless communication function in this way, it is possible to complete the reserved recording process, and to secure viewing of the reserved program.

  The remaining broadcast time calculation process (S43, S45), the recordable time calculation process (S47), and the remaining battery charge detection process (S67) are repeatedly executed in this embodiment, but only once. Even if only executed, program viewing may be secured.

  The mobile phone 10 has been described above as an example. However, the present invention can be applied to a battery-powered viewing device for viewing a broadcast program.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Mobile phone 14 ... Wireless communication circuit 26 ... CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 28 ... Power supply circuit 30 ... Battery 32 ... LCD driver 34 ... LCD monitor 38 ... Television receiver circuit 42 ... Recording processing circuit 44 ... Recording medium

Claims (4)

A viewing device that operates on power supplied by a battery,
A recording means for recording program data of a broadcast program based on the selected channel in response to a recording operation;
An operation for ending recording of the broadcast program when the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means and display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted; When there is, the recording means ends the recording of the broadcast program, the display means comprises a control means for restarting the display of the broadcast program ,
Recording the program data by supplying the program data to the recording means;
The control device, when there is an operation to end recording of the broadcast program, causes the display device to resume display of the broadcast program by returning the program data supply destination to the display device.   When the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording unit and the display of the broadcast program by the display unit is interrupted, the control unit is configured to perform the broadcast when there is no operation to end the recording of the broadcast program. The viewing device according to claim 1, wherein the program recording and display interruption are continued. A control method executed by a computer of a viewing device that operates with power supplied by a battery and includes display means and recording means ,
A recording step of recording program data of a broadcast program based on the selected channel by the recording means in response to a recording operation;
A display step of displaying the broadcast program by the display means; and when the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted, the broadcast program is recorded. When there is an operation to end, including a control step of ending the recording of the broadcast program by the recording unit and causing the display unit to resume display of the broadcast program ,
In the recording step, the program data is recorded by supplying program data to the recording means,
In the control step, when there is an operation for ending recording of the broadcast program, the display unit is caused to resume displaying the broadcast program by returning the program data supply destination to the display unit . A computer of a viewing device that operates with power supplied by a battery and includes display means and recording means
A recording step of recording program data of a broadcast program based on the selected channel by the recording means in response to a recording operation;
A display step of displaying the broadcast program by the display means; and when the broadcast program is being recorded by the recording means and the display of the broadcast program by the display means is interrupted, the broadcast program is recorded. When there is an operation to end, recording of the broadcast program by the recording unit is ended, and the display unit is caused to execute a control step of restarting the display of the broadcast program ,
In the recording step, the program data is recorded by supplying the program data to the recording means,
In the control step, when there is an operation to end recording of the broadcast program, the viewing program causes the display unit to resume display of the broadcast program by returning the program data supply destination to the display unit .

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