WO2005022909A1

WO2005022909A1 - Electronic programme guide

Info

Publication number: WO2005022909A1
Application number: PCT/EP2004/009634
Authority: WO
Inventors: Valdimar Wik; Edwin Miller Wiley; Georg Müller-Loeffelholz
Original assignee: Gist Communications Europe Gmbh
Priority date: 2003-08-25
Filing date: 2004-08-25
Publication date: 2005-03-10

Abstract

The invention relates to a set-top box (100) comprising: a receiver (110) for receiving an EPG signal; a second receiver (170) for receiving control signals, e.g. an infra-red or remote radio control; a control unit (150) that is connected to the second receiver; a TV signal generator (200) for generating and emitting an image signal for reproduction on a TV screen; a working memory (160) that is sub-divided into a plurality of segments and that is connected to the first receiver; a graphical memory (190); and several representation units (180), which encode information that is stored in a specific segment of the working memory in the form of digital image information that is suitable for receipt by the graphical memory and write said information to the memory, one of the respective representation units being permanently assigned to a respective segment of the working memory and the information contained in the latter.

Description

Electronic program guide

The invention relates to a set-top box for displaying an electronic program guide (EPG) on an image display surface, such as a television. The set-top box comprises at least one receiver for receiving an EPG signal which contains information relating to a television or radio program, hereinafter referred to as program information.

Furthermore, the invention relates to a set-top box which can display television or radio-related information received via the receiver in an electronic program guide in such a way that selected lists of programs are displayed to the television viewer according to selectable or presettable filter criteria.

Provided that it is not implemented in an independent device, the device called set-top box can be integrated in part or in full in a satellite receiver or a television set. In the prior art, set-top boxes and related solutions are known which, similar to a classic program guide, make information about programs that are currently being broadcast or at a point in time in the near future available to a television viewer. Compared to the present invention, however, the known solutions have the disadvantage that increased demands are made on the performance of the hardware due to an inefficient transmission and preparation of the program information. These increased demands on the hardware in particular result in an increased production and thus final price for the potential customer. Furthermore, the known approaches lack simple user guidance and the clarity of the program information displayed or made available.

In view of the state of the art, there is therefore the task of introducing a new set-top box with reduced hardware requirements and improved clarity and user guidance.

This object is achieved in a first aspect by the set-top box according to the invention in such a way that the set-top box has a working memory which is divided into a number of defined segments and is directly or indirectly connected to the receiver for receiving an EPG , and that at least one display unit, preferably designed as a software routine, is permanently assigned to each segment of the working memory and the program information contained therein and previously received by the receiver for receiving an EPG signal.

Furthermore, the object is achieved by a second aspect of the invention, which can be implemented independently of or in connection with the first aspect of the invention. This second aspect of the invention consists in a set-top box, which is suitable for an electronic program guide with increased clarity and improved handling. display user guidance by displaying the program information to be displayed, preferably in lists sorted and filtered according to user-defined filter criteria. In addition, the new set-top box can display so-called tool tips with context-sensitive help texts for each active element of the graphic user interface of the electronic program guide. In addition, the electronic program guide presents further information on the individual television or radio programs, preferably in the form of logos, such as logos for evaluating the selected program in terms of its quality or the genre to which the program belongs.

A set-top box according to the teaching according to the invention comprises at least a first receiver which is designed to receive an EPG signal as an independent signal or as part of a received television signal, a second receiver for receiving by the television viewer by pressing buttons a radio or infrared remote control triggered control signals, a TV signal generator, which either converts the selected TV program or the electronic program guide into an electrical signal for display on an image display area and outputs, at least one working memory divided into a plurality of segments for recording program information received by the first receiver, a graphic memory which can hold digital picture information which represents a television program or an electronic program guide and can be converted into a corresponding electrical picture signal by the TV signal generator, and a plurality of display units, preferably designed as software routines, for displaying program information stored in a segment of the main memory.

The particular advantage of the set-top box according to the invention results from the fact that each of the several display units is assigned to exactly one specific segment of the main memory and the program information stored therein. In this way, any representation be optimized for the presentation of the program information to be represented by them, so that a transfer or reading of variables as well as an examination and interpretation of the content of the program information can be dispensed with. As a result, the number of branches and work steps in the conversion of the program information into digital image information for recording by the graphics memory can be minimized, so that even a less powerful and therefore less expensive processing unit (microprocessor) prepares and receives the received program information without any noticeable delays for the user can represent. Each of the display units is designed in such a way that it receives the program information that it is to prepare for display in a predetermined format and processes it accordingly, which is why any formatting of the content of the information to be processed can be omitted after it has been received and categorized , In this way, the main part of the processing effort is shifted to the side of the transmitter of the electronic program information, which allows a simplified implementation of the set-top box according to the invention. Since a large number of set-top boxes are usually assigned to a single transmitter of electronic program information, the costs of the overall system comprising the transmitter and the large number of set-top boxes can be considerably reduced in this way.

While each display unit is assigned to exactly one segment of the main memory, several display units can be assigned to each segment of the main memory. The same information stored in a segment of the main memory is processed in different ways by the different assigned display units. A separate display unit is provided for each display form of the information stored in a segment of the main memory.

The second aspect of the invention is particularly suitable for a television viewer to obtain current program information in a clear manner in a clear manner make accessible and can be realized in an advantageous manner by a set-top box according to the first aspect of the invention. This is achieved in that the program information received is preferably displayed in lists, which preferably consist of four columns, the first of which is the type of a radio or television broadcast, the second of which is the beginning of the respective broadcast, the third of which is the broadcasting station and the fourth of which Show program name. In particular, the type of the genre of the program is preferably displayed by displaying a logo from a set of predefined genre logos stored in the set-top box. A program list of the type described can additionally also contain a quality assessment of the program in the form of graphic symbols such as arrows or a number of stars corresponding to the quality. Furthermore, a symbol can be provided for individual or each list entry, which symbolizes the presence of further program information on the respective list entry. Such more extensive program information can in particular be a short summary of the content of the respective program or an editorial assessment of the same. The user can access such additional program information preferably by selecting the corresponding list entry and pressing a selection button on the remote control. The desired list entry is preferably selected using the up and down buttons provided on the remote control and is displayed to the user by means of a graphic highlighting of the selected list entry. For this purpose, the set-top box is designed to receive corresponding control sequences from the remote control and to process them in such a way that there is a change in the display of the respective list entry.

The header of such a list preferably contains information on the content of the individual columns of the lists and on a sorting or filtering criterion on which the list is based. The set-top box is designed, the lists preferably according to the start time of the respective broadcast. to sort them so that the programs currently running are at the top, the next programs to begin below are below and later programs are shown in descending order according to their start time. In the event that several programs start at the same start time, the set-top box is designed to additionally sort the programs according to a predefined or a user-defined list of stations. In this case, programs which are running at the same time are prioritized according to the program list in such a way that programs on preferred television channels are displayed higher up than programs on less frequently viewed television channels.

The set-top box is designed to filter and sort the lists of program information according to predefined or user-defined filter criteria. In addition, filter criteria are preset in the set-top box, in particular the selection of the TV programs currently being broadcast ("What is going on?") Of program information for the same evening ("What is on tonight?") Of programs a specific «broadcaster (" What's on ARTE? ") or programs of a certain genre (" What kind of films are on today? ").

A pop-up menu is stored in the set-top box, which can be called up by a user of the electronic program guide by pressing a corresponding button on the remote control and is implemented in such a way that filter criteria can be selected via the remote control, so that by selecting filter criteria the compilation of a list according to the wishes of the user is possible. The pop-up menu is preferably designed to simultaneously display various criteria relating to the same property of the programs in question for selection as a function of control sequences that are to be generated by the user using the up and down keys on the remote control , After selecting the desired criterion from the list of criteria, pressing an appropriate button on the remote control causes a list of the selected criteria or criteria corresponding programs are displayed, pressing a right arrow key, that another pop-up menu with another set of filter criteria is displayed. This chaining of several pop-up menus enables several filter criteria to be applied simultaneously to the program information stored in the set-top box. For example, by selecting the relevant entries in several pop-up menus with filter criteria, the user could have a list of program programs compiled that only contains programs that are broadcast on the same evening, that belong to the genre of feature films and that are of high quality according to the editorial rating ,

If a list contains more program information on programs corresponding to the selected or preset filter criteria than can be displayed on the screen at the same time, only a displayable part of the list is shown on the screen and the part of the list that cannot be displayed is scrolled with the up and down buttons - Bottom buttons available.

The navigation of the program information is therefore particularly suitable for a minimalist environment; suitable, since only four arrow keys and an OK key on the remote control are available for navigation. Other products often require the presence of color or other additional keys. The list-based navigation optionally uses color and other additional keys, in particular to provide so-called "short cuts" for certain selections.

Filtering through pop-up submenus allows almost any combination and application of filter criteria.

In order to make the use of the electronic program guide particularly easy even for inexperienced users, the set-top box has, if possible, for every active element of the graphical user interface a so-called tool tip. If the user uses the navigation buttons on the remote control to select an active element of the graphical user interface, but without activating it with an action button on the remote control, the set-top box generates the tool tip after a certain time, which displays a help text which explains the actions that can be performed by the respective active element. The user can preferably set whether and after what time a tool tip appears automatically. The main advantage of the tool tip is its special feature of displaying help information that is adapted to the focus position. With the tool tips, the electronic program guide offers dynamic and situation-oriented user guidance.

Instead of a list of program information, the electronic program guide can also display a so-called TV grid. The TV grid is a two-dimensional table, the x-axis of which preferably shows the start time and the y-axis of which preferably shows the broadcasting station of the programs. Pressing the up and down buttons on the remote control rolls the displayed selection of TV channels up and down, and pressing the left and right buttons preferably shifts the selected day section according to the direction of the buttons , In the case of the TV grid, the set-top box does not display the genre as in the lists by pictogram, but preferably by highlighting the entries of the TV grid with a color symbolizing the genre of the respective program. The TV grid can be designed to display a so-called focus after pressing a selection button on the remote control; pressing the navigation buttons on the remote control maneuvers the focus through the displayed selection of programs. If additional program information is available for the entry of the TV grid selected and highlighted by the focus, this is displayed after a second press of the selection button on the remote control. The additional program information displayed by selecting a list entry or an entry of the TV grid can contain, in particular, brief summaries of the content of the program, an evaluation of the program broken down according to various criteria such as humor, action, excitement and feeling, and an overall evaluation.

When a list of programs is displayed, the set-top box, as already mentioned, preferably displays a pictogram for each entry in the list, which symbolizes the genre of the respective program. In this case, the overall rating of the quality of the shipment can be displayed instead of a pictogram by underlining the respective list entry with a color symbolizing the quality.

After selecting an appropriate menu item and pressing the OK button on the remote control, the new electronic program guide displays a list of editorial daily tips. These day tips preferably show the programs broadcast on that day with the highest quality rating of their genre. The electronic program guide preferably shows a program tip for each genre or each genre of a user-defined list; each program tip can contain an image and a brief description. The selection of the corresponding program tip calls up further information on the respective program tip.

The electronic program guide offers the option of displaying a pop-up menu for each entry in a list or a TV grid by pressing the selection button on the remote control, which offers several actions to choose from. These actions can be in particular: switching, more information, remembering, recording and canceling. By selecting the corresponding option, the user can either cause the set-top box to switch to the corresponding TV channel at the start of the selected program, more information on the display the selected program, enter the program in a watch list, record it or return to the list or the TV grid by selecting the cancel option. If a program is noted in the watch list, the user can also choose whether the set-top box should switch to the broadcasting station at the start of the program or instead display a note about the program starting in parallel in the TV program currently displayed. The selection of "more information" leads to the display of the available editorial ratings and content information for the corresponding program. If the user selects the entry "Record" from the list of possible actions, another pop-up menu is displayed which offers the selected program once, daily or weekly. This enables the particularly easy recording of television series. The set-top box can be designed to display menu entries selected above by the user of the electronic program guide particularly frequently than those selected less frequently.

The implementation of a set-top box with any selection of the functions for displaying program information explained above provides a particularly easy-to-use electronic program guide.

Preferred embodiments of the two aspects of the present invention are listed and explained below.

Two preferred variants of the set-top box according to the invention preferably have segmented non-volatile memories. In the first embodiment, this non-volatile memory contains information which can be displayed in digital image information for recording by the graphics memory of the set-top box by means of a display unit assigned to the respective segment of the non-volatile memory, for display on the television screen. This information stored in the non-volatile memory includes, in particular, the immutable Parts of the image information to be displayed on the screen, such as predefined graphic elements or help texts. The graphic elements can in particular be so-called buttons or other active elements of a graphic user interface. The second preferred embodiment with a non-volatile memory contains information stored in it, which is preferably kept in compressed form, in order to be copied once in decompressed form into one or more assigned segments of the working memory after the device is switched on and is kept unchanged until the device is switched off become. This embodiment variant has the advantage that a slower non-volatile memory, which is smaller when the information contained in the non-volatile memory is compressed, can be used. By decompressing and copying this information into the working memory, these restrictions on the non-volatile memory can advantageously be compensated for. It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that a non-volatile memory must be provided in the set-top box with uncompressed program information if the set-top box comprises functional units which are designed as software routines for execution by a microprocessor. In this preferred embodiment variant, this non-compressed program code would have to contain program code which can control the copying and decompression of the information stored in compressed form into the working memory by a microprocessor or a similar processing unit.

In a further advantageous variant of the device according to the invention, the set-top box has a packet filter which receives data packets received by the first receiver of the set-top box from a data stream divided into data packets and on the basis of header information or the content of the can filter individual packets themselves according to specified filter criteria. Header information denotes certain fields which are contained in the header of a data packet, which is called the "header", and information about the content of the data packet or deliver about its destination. A data packet is usually divided into a header and a content part.

Such a packet filter can in particular be designed as a hardware component that allows the received packets to be filtered without a microprocessor provided in the set-top box having to be additionally used for the filtering. The filter criteria according to which the packet filter filters the received packets can preferably be specified by the control unit of the set-top box at runtime. The control unit is connected to the second receiver of the set-top box and sets the filter criteria for the packet filter in succession one over the two. control sequence received by the user of the set-top box according to the wishes of the user. The use of the packet filter allows the information received to be sorted at an early stage, so that the subsequent functional units are only burdened by processing the desired content. This is advantageous since, in turn, the processing effort is reduced by the other functional units of the set-top box, which places low demands on the performance of the hardware. * ^>

The set-top box can advantageously have an unpacker which decompresses the contents of the received data packet before further processing by other functional units of the set-top box. In order to save Ü bertragungsbandweite, it _is thus possible to transfer the data received from the first receiver of the set-top box information in compressed and thus tied much more efficient form.

A particularly preferred embodiment of the device according to the invention also comprises an assignment unit which is at least indirectly connected to the first receiver and is arranged downstream of a packet filter or unpacker which may be present. The allocation unit categorizes the received packets on the basis of information that is preferably contained in the header of the individual packets and arranges the content te of the individual packets according to this header information to certain segments of the working memory and causes them to be transferred to the assigned memory segment. The assignment unit is therefore designed to feed the received information for further processing by the display units assigned to the memory segments with little effort.

In an advantageous alternative embodiment of the invention, the control unit of the set-top box can be designed to cause a display unit assigned to a segment of the working memory and thus to the information stored in the segment of the working memory, in the manner provided for this information convert digital image information and write it directly or indirectly into the graphics memory. The control unit initiates. in this way indirectly the display of certain information stored in the working memory on the screen.

In a variant of the embodiment of the invention explained above, the second receiver generates a selection signal in response to a received control sequence of the user, by means of which the control unit of the set-top box is activated to activate a display unit implied by the selection signal. In this way, the display of certain desired information on the screen by the user can be triggered by suitable control by remote control.

If the set-top box provides a packet filter, as explained above for a preferred embodiment variant, the second receiver can be designed to generate a selection signal after receiving a control sequence triggered by the user, which filter criteria for filtering the received data packets by the Packet filter determined. In this preferred embodiment of the invention, the control unit of the set-top box is designed to control the packet filter according to the filter criteria determined by the selection signal of the second receiver and for filtering of the data stream so that only packets that meet the filter criteria specified by the user are saved or processed by other units of the set-top box. In this embodiment, the filter criteria of the packet filter, which is preferably implemented in hardware, can be specified by the user.

In order to have to provide as few specialized hardware components as possible for the set-top box, the components of the set-top box can be designed as software routines for execution by a microprocessor. The components of the set-top box, which can be particularly advantageously provided as a software routine, include in particular the control unit, the packet filter, the unpacker and the assignment unit.

All variants of the device according to the invention can be designed to offer the user information on a television or radio program in the form of an electronic program guide (EPG) as an electrical image signal for display on an image display surface. An electronic program guide can replace a program guide and in Contrast this with constantly updated program information so that the television viewer is always informed in detail about program changes, even if they are announced at short notice.

The electronic program guide, which is claimed independently and designed as a set-top box, can be implemented in accordance with one of the design variants described above.

Different variants of the set-top box can contain information in at least one segment of the main memory, which is transmitted from a display unit after activation by the control unit, from the display unit to digital image information for recording by the graphics memory, so that it is indirect after the display unit has been activated Conversion of the digital image stored in the graphics memory formation in a TV signal by the TV signal generator and the display of the TV signal on a display surface, the display of an active control element (e.g. a scrollbar, an OK button, a menu etc.), a list of program information, a table of Titles of radio or television programs, of pictograms for genre indication, symbols for displaying a quality assessment of a television program or a page with daily tips.

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained below with the aid of figures.

Figure 1 shows a block diagram of a set-top box according to the invention.

Figure 2 shows a legend for the symbols used in the flowcharts below. Figure 3 shows a sample screen for an electronic program guide.

Figure 4 shows the main menu of the electronic program guide.

Figure 5 shows the flow chart underlying the main menu of Figure 4.

Figure 6 shows a table listing pictograms for a broadcast format.

Figure 7 is a table of eight different genres for the classification of television programs. Figure 8 shows a table of event pictograms.

Figure 9 shows a flow diagram for the main screen of the electronic program guide.

Figure 10 shows the "Search" menu with various submenus.

Figure 11 shows the flow chart underlying the search submenu.

Figure 12 shows a screen with detailed program information. Figure 13 shows a flow diagram for the screen shown in Figure 12 with additional program information.

Figure 14 shows an example of a screen with day tips. Figure 15 shows a flow diagram for the screen with day tips shown and explained in Figure 14.

Figure 16 shows a screen for creating a list of favorite stations.

Figure 17 shows the flowchart on which the list of preferred channels is based.

The set-top box 100 shown in Figure 1 is divided into a large number of functional blocks. Above left, the first receiver 110 can be seen, which receives a data signal divided into packets with information on television or radio broadcasts. The first receiver 110 is connected to the packet filter 120, which is preferably designed as a hardware component. The packet filter 120 filters the data packets received by the receiver 110 in accordance with the information contained in the headers of the packets or the packets themselves, according to filter criteria specified by the control unit 150. The packet filter 120 only forwards packets that meet the filter criteria specified by the control unit 150 to the unpacker 130. The unpacker 130 decompresses the contents of the data packets compressed by compression algorithms and received by the receiver 110 before transmission. By transmitting the packet contents in a compressed manner, expensive transmission bandwidth can be saved. The unpacker 130 forwards the decompressed packet contents to an allocation unit 140. The assignment unit 140 categorizes the received data on the basis of the header information of the packets or the content of the data itself and assigns it to one of the memory segments 165 to 169 of the main memory 160. Each of the segments 165 to 169 of the working memory 160 is provided for receiving program information of a predetermined type. The memory segments 161 to 164 of the working memory 160 contain image information which is not changed during the operation of the set-top box 100. A user can drive of the set-top box 100 cannot be changed. A user can use the remote control 300 to send control sequences to the infrared receiver 170. The second receiver of the set-top box 100, which is designed as an infrared receiver 170, converts the received control sequences into signals for the control unit 150 and forwards them to the control unit 150. Depending on the type of signals transmitted from the infrared receiver 170 to the control unit 150, the control unit 150 either generates a filter criteria for filtering the data stream received by the receiver 110 through the packet filter 120 determining control signal for the packet filter 120 or a control signal which is combined in a library 180 and as Display units 181 to 189 designed for software routines cause the information stored in a segment 161 to 169 of the working memory 160 and assigned to the respective display unit 181 to 189 to be converted into digital image information which is displayed in the graphics memory 190 by the display units 181 to 189 to be written. A TV signal generator 200 converts the digital image information stored in the graphics memory 190 into an electrical image signal which, for example, can be displayed on an television screen by an electronic program guide. '

Figure 2 shows a legend for the symbols used in the flowcharts below. The legend lists a total of seven such symbols, which are arranged from top to bottom. At the top you can see an octagon labeled OK. This octagon symbolizes the button on the remote control of the set-top box indicated by the label, the pressing of which triggers a certain action, which is described by a branch in the respective flow chart.

In the course of the description of the set-top box based on the illustrations, a linguistic distinction is not always made clearly between the triggering control action of the user and the unit of the set-top box that executes the action ("pressing the OK button marks an entry" However, what is always meant is that the set-top box is tion of the user via remote control to carry out the desired action. This abbreviated representation is to be understood in all cases so that pressing a button on the remote control causes it to send a control sequence to the second receiver of the set-top box, which sequence is received by the second receiver and to the control unit of the Set-top box is passed. Depending on the type of control sequence received, the control unit generates a selection signal for the packet filter or one or more of the display units, which are activated by this selection signal. Finally, the display units represent the desired information or the result desired by the user indirectly via the graphics memory and the TV signal generator on the television screen.

As a second symbol, the illustration shows a wide rectangle with rounded corners, which bears the inscription "EPG-Mainscreen". The rectangle with its rounded corners symbolizes a television screen and stands for a display of an application screen, the title of which occupies the entire screen the label of the rectangle is given in the flowcharts.

The third symbol of the legend is a tall rectangle that is divided into several lines, each line containing a label. This high rectangle is a selection menu that can be called up as an application menu against the background of an application screen. The menu has a title in the first line of the symbol, the other lines of the menu contain the available selection options for the menu.

The fourth legend entry is relatively similar in appearance to the third, since it consists of a rectangle with rounded corners. However, this rectangle is somewhat narrower than the one that symbolizes the application menu and has only two lines of labeling. While the first line of the label indicates the title of the object, the second with "SUB-MENU" specifies the type of the displayed object itself.

The fifth object of the legend is elongated in the horizontal direction and has two semicircular ends. It is highlighted with a dark color and symbolizes a selection option of a previously displayed menu. This selection marker shows a branch in a flow chart after selection of the corresponding menu item.

The sixth is the pop-up symbol. It is again designed as a rectangle with rounded edges and has an aspect ratio similar to that of the icon on the application screen. In it, the title and the word "Popup" are to be read in a two-line label. A Popup denotes a graphic screen element which displays information and a possible selection option against the background of the previously displayed application screen.

The seventh point of the legend is represented by a combination of three rectangles. The top of the three rectangles is larger than the two accompanying rectangles and bears the title of the symbol. The two associated significantly smaller rectangles bear the words "yes" and "no" and show the branches resulting from the condition specified in the title. This last symbol in the legend therefore shows a conditional branching into a flow chart.

Figure 3 shows a sample screen for the electronic program guide implemented by the set-top box. The set-top box is designed in such a way that it shows the television program last viewed in the top right in a scaled-down version and with muffled sound. The sample screen shows a list of programs currently running. This list comprises six entries and is sorted according to the station information given in the third column. The genre indication can be recognized by pictograms in the first column of the list. The first Both entries concern sports programs, which is indicated by a schematic soccer ball. The third and sixth entries in the list provide information on two films currently in progress, which is indicated in the genre column by a schematic film role. The two remaining entries in the list relate to series, which is indicated in each case by three small screen symbols that are offset isometric.

A feature of the set-top box is that only one entry in the list can have the focus. The focus is moved up and down through the list using the navigation buttons on the remote control. The list entry that currently holds the focus is highlighted in color over the others. In the example shown in the figure, the first list entry is focused, which was additionally emphasized in the figure by a frame ^" which does not represent a screen element displayed by the electronic program guide. The focused list entry is in the center of the electronic screen In addition to the information already shown in the list, the program guide also displays brief information, which also shows the broadcast date, _v the full title, the duration and a number of pictograms relating to the broadcast format. These pictograms can, for example, show the program's age rating, two-channel sound , the screen format or any available subtitles.

To the left of this program information, the set-top box displays the actions available for selection. In the case of the example given in the illustration, the user of the electronic program guide has two actions to choose from, that is, the set-top box is designed so that pressing the OK button selects the program that is currently focused, pressing the left button opens the main menu.

Figure 4 shows the main menu generated by the set-top box. It includes a rectangular box titled "MAIN MENU" and overall seven consecutively numbered entries, which can be selected using a control sequence to be generated with a remote control and whose activation each causes the display of a submenu or triggers an action specified by the title of the entry.

Figure 5 shows the flow chart underlying the main menu. The starting point of the flow chart is the television program shown above. Pressing the "Guide" button calls up the electronic program guide, which is indicated by the display of the main screen of the electronic program guide. Pressing the left button leads to the opening of the main menu, from where by pressing the left button again The main menu is shown in a schematic diagram with the same seven entries as in the lower left in Figure 4. The entries in the main menu are indicated by pressing the up and down keys focused on the remote control and activated by pressing the OK button. The seven different entries in the main menu lead to the same number of branches. The selection of the first menu item leads to the display of the screen with the day tips. This is provided by the service provider of the electronic program guide consignments classified as particularly worth seeing in one exercise compiled displayed. The selection of the second menu item allows the electronic program guide to return to his main screen, where a list of the current TV programs is then displayed. The third option of the main menu, "Search", branches into the search submenu. This submenu is explained in Figure 11 by its own flowchart. The user can use this to specify filter criteria according to which the available program information is searched for programs that match the filter criteria The fourth menu entry leads to the display of the options submenu, in which user settings for the appearance and behavior of the electronic program guide can be made. rers have several so-called skins, one of which can be selected by the user. The selection of a skin changes the display of all screen elements, their colors, the character sets and, if applicable, their placement. The options submenu can furthermore have a menu item, by activating which programs with an age limit can only be displayed or recorded after entering a password. The fifth entry in the main menu, "Help", displays the help popup. The help popups available in several menus of the electronic program guide display short help texts for operating the respective screen or menu of the electronic program guide. The penultimate menu item The main menu leads to the display of the news screen, on which current top news and possibly program information on news or documentation programs on the same subject are displayed.The seventh and last entry of the main menu leads to the SMS services offered by the service provider of the electronic program guide or third parties These SMS services can include competitions, paid downloading of ringtones and mobile phone logos, SMS message service or message forums, which allow various users of \ set-top boxes to communicate with one another at a charge.

Figure 6 shows a table that lists the pictograms or icons for a broadcast format that were used to explain the brief information on a focused program note in Figure 3. The table is divided into three columns, the first of which shows the pictogram itself, the second contains the name of the pictogram and the third contains a brief description. The first pictogram signals that a certain program is being broadcast with stereo sound. The pictogram shown in the second line signals a transmission with Dolby room sound. The third pictogram, consisting of a white S against a black background and a black W against a white background, shows the black and white transmission of a television program. The pictogram on the four th line of the table with two separate circles is shown in the program information if the television program is a program that is broadcast in several languages. A program with teletext subtitles for the hearing impaired is indicated by the pictogram on the fifth line of the table. The pictogram with the inscription "16: 9" signals a program in 16: 9 format which is suitable for display on a wide-screen television. The next pictogram contains the word "tip" and indicates a program, the inclusion in the selection of daily tips from the service provider of the electronic program guide. The penultimate pictogram in the table shows a program that is transmitted with an additional audio track for the visually impaired. The FSK pictogram indicates a program with an age restriction. In the program information, a suitable number indicates the suitability of the content of the respective television program for a certain age group.

Figure 7 is a table of a total of eight different genres that the electronic program guide uses to classify the various radio or television programs. The first two entries in the table show the pictograms of the genres "Film" and "Series" already explained in the description of Figure 3. The pictogram representing an "i" on the third line of the table signals an information or documentary broadcast. The schematized soccer ball shown on the fourth line of the table indicates a sports broadcast. The fifth pictogram shows two musical notes and signals a music broadcast. The pictogram that three stars indicates an entertainment program or show The seventh table entry shows a so-called smiley and signals a children's program The eighth pictogram shows a star encircled, which summarizes all unclassifiable programs.

Figure 8 again shows a table that lists pictograms that indicate programmed or present actions for a particular program. show or offer. These action or event pictograms are shown in the lists of program information to the right of the title. They can also be seen in the example of the electronic program guide shown in Figure 3.

The first pictogram in the table shows a selection circle with a check mark and indicates that a reminder notification has been saved for the program in question. The second pictogram shows a schematic padlock and appears for programs that are broadcast on encrypted Pay-TV channels for which the owner of the set-top box is not registered. A bold "A" indicates a broadcast that can only be received via analogue broadcasting. A bold "D", on the other hand, indicates a broadcast that can be received via digital television. The set-top box uses a schematic arrow to the right to indicate that further information is available on a program note. This further information is displayed when the relevant entry in the list is focused and the right button is pressed.

Figure 9 shows a flow diagram for the main screen of the electronic program guide. The starting point of the flow chart is the "TV program" shown at the top. Pressing the "Guide" button calls up the main screen of the electronic program guide. It shows a list of the television or radio programs currently being broadcast. The focus can be moved back and forth between the different list entries by pressing the up or down keys, which is indicated by corresponding key symbols in the flowchart. If the right arrow key is pressed, the set-top box shows any additional program information available for an entry in the list on the "MORE INFO" screen. Pressing the OK button leads to the event menu in the main screen of the electronic program guide. The event menu lists four menu items: "toggle", "more info", "remind" and "help". By selecting the "More info" entry in the event menu, the more info screen with further program information is also called up. The first entry in the event menu, "toggle", leads to automatic display after pressing the OK button at the start of the program of the focused list entry, provided that it is not encrypted. If the check shows that the selected program is only available in encrypted form, the set-top box indicates this with a corresponding pop-up window and returns to the event menu after pressing the OK button. The selection of the. "Remind" option of the event menu branches into a submenu in which the user can set a marker, whereupon the set-top box. Reminds the user of this at the beginning of the marked program by a display on the television screen Focusing the "Help" option and pressing the OK button causes the set-top box to display a help popup. The help popup offers brief explanations of how to use the electronic program guide.

Figure ^ 10 shows the "Search" menu with its various submenus as shown by the electronic program guide. The electronic program guide shows an opened submenu half-shifted to the right over the previously displayed menu so that the latter remains half-visible. The figure shows a total of five partially overlapping menus, with the main menu at the bottom from which the search submenu was called up by selecting the search option The search menu offers four options, the second of which shows the third In the station menu, the electronic program guide lists the first seven stations in the user-configured list of favorite stations. The focus follows pressing the up and down buttons through the submenu. The focused menu entry is made by pressing the Right key selected, whereupon the set-top box automatically h the time Sub menu shows. A total of seven selection options are available in this time submenu. The first is recorded every twenty-four hours of a day, while the other six select a four-hour day segment. When a corresponding day section is selected using the right button, the set-top box displays the day submenu. The daily submenu shows the seven days of the week of the week from which the user can select the day of the program they are looking for.

Figure 11 shows the flow chart underlying the search submenu. The search submenu is shown on the left as the starting point of the flow chart. The selection of the first menu entry "Time" leads to the display of the time submenu. There the user can select one of the six day sections as a filter criterion with the OK button and display a list of programs that are broadcast during the selected day section -right key leads to the display of the day submenu, in which a weekday can be selected by moving the focus and pressing the OK key, for which program information is to be displayed in a list for the time in question.

The second entry in the search submenu leads to the genre submenu. In the genre submenu, the user can select one of the eight genres that the electronic program guide uses to classify radio and television programs. Pressing the OK button causes the electronic program guide to display a list of programs of the selected genre, sorted by broadcasting time and broadcasting station. If the right button on the remote control is pressed, the time submenu and, if necessary, the day submenu are displayed to select additional filter criteria.

By selecting the third menu item of the search menu and pressing the OK button, the station submenu is displayed. In this can a predefined or possibly user-defined favorite list of stations can be selected, whereby the search is limited to programs broadcast by the selected station. After selecting the desired station using the up and down buttons, pressing the OK button leads directly to a display of programs that are running on the selected station. This list is sorted by the start time of the programs listed. If you press the right button in the transmitter submenu, you branch back to the time submenu and the following day submenu.

As a fourth search criterion, the search submenu offers the "ratings". After selecting this menu item with the OK button, the user enters the rating submenu. There, the user can use the up and down buttons of the Remote control make more or less strict restrictions regarding the editorial rating of the programs. Pressing the OK button in turn leads directly to the display of a list of programs sorted according to the start time and the broadcasting station that have received a high quality rating according to the specification the right arrow button in turn causes the electronic program guide to branch to the time and day submenu.

Figure 12 shows a screen with detailed program information as provided by the electronic program guide. The individual elements of the information screen have been given numbers between 1 and 10 and will be explained individually below.

The first element on the top left is a picture from the television program. To the right of this is number 2, the title of the program. Below this appears the station name (4), start and end time of the program (5), the event pics explained in the description of Figure 8 togrammes (3) and a series of technical pictograms (6) according to the table in Figure 6.

To the right of this information, a table appears with an overall rating indicated in the form of an arrow next to the genre of the program as well as ratings broken down according to individual rating criteria. The assessments are shown by a varying number of filled circles (7). In the lower half of the screen with the program information you can see a text with a short content of the program (8). Three dots at the end of the text indicate that there is at least one additional page of text. In addition, the number of pages and the number of pages available can be seen at the bottom right (9).

A short menu with three selection items can be seen in the center on the right (10). Selecting the first two menu items with the OK button causes the set-top box to switch to the current program for which the program information is currently being displayed, or, if the second menu item is selected, one in this case according to the indication under the Event pictograms (3) set markers for showing a reminder at the beginning of the program. Selecting the third menu item, "Help", again displays a help text.

Finally, the current date, the current time and a title of the screen page can be read in the upper quarter of the screen. In addition, a brief explanation is given of which buttons on this screen cause which action of the electronic program guide.

Figure 13 shows a flow diagram for the screen shown in Figure 12 with additional program information. The starting point is the "more info" screen, which is shown in the top center of the flowchart. Pressing the left button closes the "more info" screen and returns to the previously displayed screen. back, from which the "more information" screen was opened by calling up the additional information. With the right key, a second information screen is opened, which can contain, in particular, the continuation of the content started on the first information screen All screens with additional information are connected to three selectable branches: The selection of the first branch leads to the direct switching of the current television program to the station of the selected program if it is already being broadcast, otherwise a marker is set which sets the set-top Box causes the selected program to switch to the beginning of the program when the set-top box and the connected television are switched on. Before setting the appropriate marker, a check is carried out to determine whether the program is encrypted and whether it’s accessible to the viewer, if it’s not n, the set-top box displays a lock info popup that informs the user that he cannot see the program. Pressing the OK button again returns to the "more info" screen. However, if the program is accessible to the user, the marker is set and the television program viewed last is returned. Alternatively, the user of the electronic program guide can use the "more info" Set a marker on the screen to remind the start of the selected program. The appointment management for such reminders is called up by selecting the "remind" option from the menu and confirming with the OK button. Calling the "help" option in turn leads to the display of a help popup.

Figure 14 shows an example of the day tips screen. The individual elements of the screen have again been provided with the numbers 1 to 7 for better explanation. The head of the screen with points 1, 2 and 3 is designed similar to the screen from Figure 12. Only page number 3 was taken over in the header of the page. In the main part of the screen, several program information are displayed one above the other. The first tip of the day on the site is particularly raised and illustrated by a picture (5). The genre of the highlighted program is indicated above this image, which is indicated on the right by an additional colored square symbolizing the genre. Depending on the genre of the day tip, the color of this square varies. The genre is also displayed in the same way for the program tips listed under the highlighted day tip. In the information section that appears on the right or under the genre indication, the station name and broadcast time of the daily tips are given. In addition, the first lines of explanatory text are displayed on the day tips screen and a possible continuation of the table of contents is indicated by three dots. This further information can be called up by selecting the menu item "more info" (6).

In addition to the table of contents, a pictogram also appears, which signals the positive overall evaluation of the daily tip. Additional information on each of the day tips displayed can be called up via a "more information" menu entry. The screen with the day tips offers a tip for each genre. From the program tip for each genre, a corresponding menu entry can be used to display a screen with tips for further programs of the corresponding genre.

Figure 15 shows a flow diagram for the screen with day tips shown and explained in Figure 14. The starting point is the screen of the day tips, which is centrally arranged at the top, from which you can go to a second screen with day tips by pressing the right button. From there, you can return to the first day tips screen by pressing the left button. The day tips screen is closed by pressing the left button, and the electronic program guide displays the main menu. The flowchart branches out of each of the daily tips screens into two branches. The selection of the first ("more info") leads to the "more info" screen, which is exited by pressing the left arrow key. The "more information" screen offers its own branches, which are in the associated Flow chart of Figure 13 can be explained. The second branch from the day tips screen leads to the genre tips. Choosing this will cause the set-top box to display a screen with daily tips for the selected genre.

Figure 16 shows a screen on which the user of the set-top box can compile the list of his favorite channels. Based on this channel list and the broadcasting time of the programs, the set-top box sorts lists of program information before displaying them. When delivered, the set-top box has a predefined list of channels that the user can adapt to his preferences. As usual, the screen for editing the channel list has a page header on which the date and time as well as brief explanations of the actions that can be called up using the buttons on the remote control are displayed. In addition, a reduced version of the TV program last selected is shown in the top right. In the lower part of the screen you can see a list of all channels minus the channels that have already been added to the user-defined list on the right.

Between the two lists is a menu with several selection options. If the first menu item ("Original list") is selected, the set-top box returns the originally available channel list here. Via the second menu item ("Add") a channel from the channel list on the left can be added to the list of favorite channels. The selection of the third menu item ("remove") deletes a station from the list of favorite stations. Via the fourth menu item ("move") the sorting of the list of favorite stations can be adapted to the wishes of the user.

Selecting the fifth menu item and pressing the OK button saves the list of favorite channels in their current version, whereupon the set-top box displays the lists of program information displayed after the updated list of favorite channels sorted. The selection of the penultimate menu item ("cancel") discards the changes to the list of favorite channels and returns to the previously displayed screen. A help popup can be called up via the last menu item.

Figure 17 shows the flowchart for creating the list of favorite channels. The diagram is divided centrally by the seven menu items. The upper half of the diagram shows the parts of the flowchart that relate to the part seen on the settings screen on the left, in the lower part of the flowchart general actions and those that affect the list of favorite channels on the right side of the screen. If the focus is in the list of available channels on the left of the screen, it can be moved back and forth in the list of available channels by pressing the up and down keys. Pressing the OK button marks an entry in the station list and highlights it with a light color. If an entry had already been marked, pressing the OK button removes this marking. ₍ After marking the stations in the station list, pressing the right button moves the focus back to the menu shown in the middle of the screen. The first menu item "Original list" after pressing the OK button sets the position of the Set-Top-Box restore the preset station list. Selecting the "Add" option adds the stations selected in the station list on the left to the favorite stations on the right. Pressing the right button moves the focus to the list of favorite stations on the right. There As with the list of available stations, one or more stations can be marked by moving the focus using the up and down buttons and pressing the OK button. The left button then takes you to the action menu returned in the middle of the screen, where the selected channels can be removed from the list of favorite channels by selecting the "remove" option. Alternatively, one can be found in the list of favorite channels Change the marked station by selecting the menu item "Move" and then navigate using the up and down buttons on the remote control and down. then pressing the OK button in the station list. This changes the order in which program notes are sorted accordingly. Selecting the fifth menu item, "save", and pressing the OK button causes a pop-up to appear asking you to confirm that you want to save the updated list of favorite stations. If the pop-up confirms saving, the old list is displayed the favorite station is overwritten. The selection of the menu item "cancel" leads to the discarding of the changes made to the list of favorite stations since the last saving. Here, too, a popup appears asking for confirmation. If the user confirms the cancellation by selecting the OK option and then pressing the OK button, the screen for creating the list of favorite channels is closed and the screen is returned to the previously displayed screen. If the confirmation pop-up says no, the set-top box returns to the previous screen, where the user can make further changes to the list of his favorite channels. Selecting the "Help" option again displays a popup with help information.

Claims

1. Set-top box with at least one first receiver for receiving an EPG signal as an independent signal or as part of a television signal, a second receiver for receiving control signals, for example an infrared or radio remote control, - one directly or indirectly with at least the second Receiver connected control unit, a TV signal generator for generating and outputting an image signal for reproduction on an image display surface, in particular a television screen, a working memory divided into a plurality of segments, which is connected directly or indirectly to the first receiver, a graphic memory which is formed is to record digital image information and pass it on to the TV signal generator, so that the TV signal generator can generate and output an image signal which allows the content of the digital image information contained in the graphics memory to be reproduced on one image display surface, and several Display units, which are preferably designed as software routines, to combine information stored in a specific segment of the working memory and relating to the television program in digital image information suitable for recording by the graphics memory. dieren and write directly or indirectly in the graphics memory, characterized in that exactly one of the display units is permanently assigned to each segment of the working memory and the information contained therein.

2. Set-top box according to claim 1, characterized in that the set-top box has a preferably segmented non-volatile memory which contains information for coding by at least one display unit assigned to the non-volatile memory or its segment in a for recording by contains digital image information suitable for the graphics memory.

3. Set-top box according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory assigned to a display unit is designed to record information stored once in a non-volatile memory and preferably in compressed form after the device has been switched on and to keep this information unchanged in decompressed form until the device is switched off.

4. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the set-top box has a packet filter which is connected directly or indirectly to the first receiver of the set-top box and is designed to one of first recipient received, in To filter packets divided data stream in accordance with filter criteria preferably specified by the control unit of the set-top box on the basis of information contained in the individual packets or their headers about the content of the individual packets in such a way that only packets which correspond to the specified filter criteria are processed further be saved or passed on by other units of the set-top box.

5. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the set-top box has an unpacker which is designed to contain the content of a data stream compressed before transmission by a compression process and received by the first receiver or to decompress a packet of the data stream before subsequent evaluation and processing.

6. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the set-top box has an allocation unit which is directly or indirectly connected to the working memory and is formed by the unpacker, the packet filter or the first receiver and, if necessary, assign packets of the data stream received by the first receiver processed by these or other units of the set-top box on the basis of information contained in the individual packets or their headers about the content of the individual packets to specific segments of the working memory and the content of a specific segment of the memory allocated packages in the corresponding segment of the memory.

7. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the control unit of the set-top box is designed to cause the display unit assigned to a segment of the working memory to cause the information stored in the segment of the working memory to be recorded encode suitable digital image information by means of the graphics memory and write it directly or indirectly into the graphics memory.

8. Set-top box according to claim 7, characterized in that the second receiver is designed to generate a selection signal based on a received control sequence, by which a display unit is determined, and that the control unit of the set-top box is designed to cause the display unit determined by the selection signal to encode the information stored in the segment of the working memory assigned to the display unit in digital image information suitable for recording by the graphics memory and to write it directly or indirectly into the graphics memory.

Set-top box according to claim 4, characterized in that the second receiver is designed to generate a selection signal based on a received control sequence, by means of which filter criteria are determined, and that the control unit of the set-top box is designed, the packet filter in accordance with the filter criteria determined by the selection signal, to cause a data stream received by the first receiver to be divided into packets on the basis of data packets filter the information contained in the individual packets or their headers in such a way that only packets that meet the criteria determined by the selection signal are stored or forwarded for further processing by other units in the set-top box.

10. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one of the following components of the set-top box is designed as a software routine for execution by a microprocessor:

- control unit, - packet filter, - unpacker, - allocation unit.

1 1. Set-top box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the set-top box is designed to generate an image signal for display on a picture display surface, which contains information about a television program, so that the set Top-Box forms an electronic program guide (EPG).

12. Set-top box, in particular according to claim 11, characterized in that the electronic program guide realizes one or more of the following and the features described above: list-based sorting and navigation for electronic program guides, User guidance through tooltips genre indication via logos TV-GRID, display of further, more detailed program information such as daily tips, display of additional evaluation information for programs or quality indicators, in particular an o color-based indication of the evaluation and / or an o sorting according to evaluation criteria.

13. Set-top box according to claim 12 and one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the control unit in digital image information Conversion into an electrical image signal, which, when reproduced on an image display surface, effects a representation of a control element, is converted.

14. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 or 13 and one of claims 1 to 1 1, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the Control unit is converted into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal which, when reproduced on an image display surface, causes a list-based representation of program information.

15. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 to 14 and one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information which is generated by one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the control unit into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal, which is reproduced on an image display surface, a table-based representation of program information in a TV -Grid causes is transferred.

16. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 to 15 and one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the control unit is converted into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal, which is reproduced on an image display surface and causes a genre indication to be displayed for program information displayed.

17. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 to 16 and one of claims 1 to 1 1, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the Control unit is converted into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal which, when reproduced on an image display surface, effects a representation of an editorial quality evaluation for a displayed program information by means of a pictogram.

18. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 to 17 and one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment of the working memory when activated by the control unit is converted into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal which, when reproduced on an image display surface, causes a pop-up menu or a chain of pop-up menus to be displayed, according to the activation of which filter criteria for program information to be displayed can be specified.

19. Set-top box according to one of claims 12 to 18 and one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one segment of the working memory contains information from one of the display units assigned to each segment: of the working memory when they are activated by the control unit into digital image information for conversion into an electrical image signal, which is reproduced on an image display surface and shows detailed program information on programs whose broadcast is intended for the current day and which has a particularly high editorial quality rating, in the form of daily tips causes, is transferred.