Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
1997-07-03
2001-07-17
Flynn, Nathan (Department: 2711)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
C348S014160
Reexamination Certificate
active
06262721
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a service supply apparatus, a service receiving apparatus and a broadcast system composed of the service supply apparatus and the service receiving apparatus, and more particularly to a service supply apparatus for supplying a service of a broadcasting program and service addition information indicating attributes of the broadcasting program, a service receiving apparatus of a viewer for receiving the service of the broadcasting program and the service addition information and a broadcast system for transmitting a broadcasting program required by a viewer from the service supply apparatus to the service receiving apparatus of the viewer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Multi-media information such as audio information and visual information has been recently supplied to a user (or a viewer) with the advancement of a communication technique and a data processing technique. Also, because a large capacity of recording medium has been developed, a user can use a broadcast system to transmit a large volume of broadcasting program data by using a broadcast communicating unit, the broadcasting program data is received and stored by a terminal unit on a user's side and the broadcasting program data is reproduced and viewed by the user.
2.1. Previously Proposed Art
As one conventional technique of the broadcast system already disclosed, broadcasting program data including both content data of a broadcasting program expected to be viewed by a viewer and control data used to control the broadcasting program is broadcasted from a broadcasting center and is received by a receiving terminal unit of the viewer, the broadcasting program data is recorded in a recording medium, the recorded broadcasting program data is read out when the user desires to view the broadcasting program, and the broadcasting program is viewed by the viewer.
Also, another conventional broadcast system, in which a processing program used to process a broadcasting program is transmitted with the broadcasting program to a receiving terminal unit of the viewer, is known. In this broadcast system, data of the broadcasting program and data of the processing program are distributed in a plurality of objects, and the data are transmitted in an object unit. Therefore, display contents of the broadcasting program can be widely changed because the processing program is transmitted with the broadcasting program and is executed.
2.2. Problems to be Solved by the Invention
However, in the conventional broadcast system, though the broadcasting program is transmitted, the display contents of the broadcasting program are changed by executing the processing program and the viewer can entertain varied contents of the broadcasting program, main contents of the broadcasting program (or a main portion of the broadcasting program) are only reproduced and displayed in cases where the contents of the broadcasting program are reproduced and displayed on the user's receiving terminal unit. Therefore, in cases where a service supplier desires to supply a broadcasting program or a service relating to the broadcasting program to one or more viewers on condition that the broadcasting program suits their tastes or personal attributes, the service supplier is required to specify in advance the viewers to which the service supplier really desires to supply the broadcasting program or the service. Otherwise, the service supplier has no choice but to supply the broadcasting program or the service to a plurality of unspecified users regardless of tastes of the unspecified users. In other words, unless the service supplier knows tastes of a plurality of users, the service supplier cannot supply the broadcasting program or the service to the users on condition that the broadcasting program suits their tastes. Also, in cases where each of a plurality of users is specified in advance by a service supplier, the service supplier is required to get allowance for supplying a broadcasting program or a service relating to the broadcasting program from each of the users each time the broadcasting program or the service is supplied to the users. Therefore, there is a drawback that a transmission volume of data of the broadcasting program or the service is increased as the number of users is increased.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide, with due consideration to the drawbacks of such a conventional broadcast system, a broadcast system in which a broadcasting program transmitted from a center station is reproduced and displayed on a side of each of a plurality of viewers on condition that the broadcasting program suits a taste of each viewer regardless of whether the viewers are specified. Also, the object of the present invention is to provide a service supply apparatus and a service receiving apparatus used in the broadcast system.
In the broadcast system according to a first idea, an attribute (or a taste) of each viewer is registered on a receiving side, an attribute of a broadcasting program is specified by a service supplier of a center side to limitedly supply the broadcasting program to a group of particular viewers to which the service supplier desires to supply the broadcasting program, the broadcasting program and the attribute of the broadcasting program are supplied to all viewers from the center side, the attribute of the broadcasting program is examined on each receiving side, and it is judged on each receiving side whether or not the attribute of the broadcasting program matches with the attribute of the viewer. In cases where the attribute of the broadcasting program matches with the attribute of the viewer, it is judged that the broadcasting program is suitable for the viewer, and the broadcasting program is reproduced and displayed by the viewer.
Also, in the broadcast system according to a second idea, an attribute (or a taste) of a viewer and an operation record of the viewer indicating the reproduction of a particular broadcasting program received by the viewer are transmitted to a center side for each of a plurality of viewers, and an overall attribute of a plurality of viewers by which the particular broadcasting program is reproduced and displayed are grasped by a program supplier according to the attributes of the viewers and the operation records of the viewers.
Also, in the broadcast system according to a third idea, a data transmitting means is placed between a center side and each service receiving terminal unit, an electronic direct mail or a questionnaire about one or more broadcasting programs is transmitted from the center side, the electronic direct mail or the questionnaire is received by one or more service receiving terminal units of particular viewers through the data transmitting means, and replies submitted to the questionnaire is returned from the particular viewers to the center side.
The object of the present invention is achieved by the provision of a broadcast system comprising a service supply apparatus for supplying service content information of a plurality of broadcasting programs one after another and a receiving terminal apparatus for receiving the service content information of each broadcasting program supplied by the service supply apparatus,
the service supply apparatus comprising:
broadcasting data storing means for storing the service content information indicating contents of each of the broadcasting programs as broadcasting data;
service addition information preparing means for preparing service addition information indicating an attribute of each broadcasting program stored in the broadcasting program storing means as broadcasting data; and
broadcasting data transmitting means for transmitting the service content information of each broadcasting program stored in the broadcasting program storing means and the service addition information of the corresponding broadcasting program prepared by the service addition information preparing means, and
the receiving te
Fujita Ken-ichi
Goto Yoshimasa
Harada Takenosuke
Kaneko Shigeki
Machida Kazuhiro
Flynn Nathan
Gopstein Israel
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
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