KR101175349B1 - Integrating program guide system and method for providing matching information - Google Patents

Abstract

An integrated program guide providing system and method for providing matching information is provided. The integrated program guide providing system for providing matching information includes a real time broadcast guide generator for generating guide information on a real time broadcast program, a VOD broadcast guide generator for generating guide information on VOD content, and the real time broadcast. And a content matching unit for matching a program and the V-audio content, guide information about the real-time broadcasting program, guide information about the V-audio content, and information related to the matching, wherein the matched real-time broadcasting content and V-audio An integrated program guide generation unit for generating an integrated program guide providing a link between contents is included.

Real Time, VOD, Association, Matching, EPG, 3D, Grid, Motion Sensing

Description

INTEGRATING PROGRAM GUIDE SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING MATCHING INFORMATION}

The present invention relates to a system and method for providing integrated program guide for providing matching information. More particularly, the present invention includes guide information about a real-time broadcasting program and guide information about vaudio content, and includes a matched real-time broadcasting content and An integrated program guide providing system and method for providing links between VOD content.

IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) is a service that provides a variety of information, video content, and broadcasting to the television using the high-speed Internet, IPTV is a type of digital convergence in that it is a convergence of the Internet and television. IPTV has no difference from general cable broadcasting or satellite broadcasting in that it provides broadcasting contents including video, but it is very different from general cable broadcasting or satellite broadcasting in that bidirectionality is added.

Such IPTV provides various broadcast contents to viewers, and its use is widely expanded because viewers can watch programs they want to watch at desired times. In addition, since IPTV provides not only real-time broadcast programs but also VOD contents and data broadcasts, the EPG provided by the IPTV service includes various information.

However, as the types and amounts of IPTV services and contents are rapidly increased, it is difficult for a user to easily search for desired contents through an EPG, and it is difficult to easily control a complex EPG using a button type remote controller.

In particular, since the format and structure of the EPG for the real-time broadcast program and VOD content provided by IPTV are different from each other, it is difficult to freely search for the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content.

After all, despite the general purpose of watching IPTV, IPTV users need to know exactly where their VOD content is located, and if they don't find what they're looking for, they have to do a complex search process again. There was a problem in that it was tired to search for content.

On the other hand, as a prior art, Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0750164 discloses an invention entitled "Three-Dimensional EP Providing Apparatus and Method", which is a three-dimensional EPG for the broadcast program included in the EPG The present invention relates to an EPG providing technology that facilitates searching.

However, since the above-described prior art does not display the program guide for the real-time broadcast program and the program guide for the VOD content together, there is a problem that it is difficult to easily select all the contents through the EPG. Since no matching information between VOD contents is provided, it is difficult to easily select contents between different types of EPGs.

Accordingly, there is a strong demand for an integrated program guide providing system and method for easily and intuitively moving and selecting between a real-time broadcast program and VOD content while simultaneously displaying program information about a real-time broadcast program and VOD content of an IPTV.

Some embodiments of the present invention provide an integrated program guide providing system and method that can provide matching information between a real-time broadcast program and VOD content.

In addition, an embodiment of the present invention provides a system and method for providing an integrated program guide that can display matching information between a real-time broadcast program and VOD content by superimposing it on the back of a three-dimensional grid.

In addition, an embodiment of the present invention provides a system and method for providing a three-dimensional grid integrated program guide that can be intuitively controlled through the movement of a remote control having a motion sensor.

As a technical means for achieving the above-described technical problem, a first aspect of the present invention is a real-time broadcast guide generation unit for generating guide information about a real-time broadcast program, VOD for generating guide information about VOD content And a broadcast guide generation unit, a content matching unit matching the real time broadcast program and the VOD content, guide information about the real time broadcast program, guide information about the VAudio content, and information related to the matching. An integrated program guide providing system providing matching information including an integrated program guide generation unit for generating an integrated program guide providing a link between a matched real-time broadcast content and a V-audio content may be provided.

In addition, a second aspect of the present invention provides a guide information receiving unit for receiving guide information about a real-time broadcast program and guide information about VOD content, and receiving matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content. An integrated program guide including a matching information receiver, guide information on the received real-time broadcasting program, guide information on the V-audio content, and the matching information, and providing a link between the matched real-time broadcasting content and the V-audio content. An integrated program guide providing terminal providing matching information including an integrated program guide generation unit for generating a may be provided.

In addition, a third aspect of the present invention provides a method of generating guide information on a real-time broadcast program, generating guide information on a VOD content, matching the real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content with each other. And generating guide information on the real-time broadcasting program, guide information on the V-audio content, and information on the matching, and establishing a link between the matched real-time broadcasting content and V-audio content to generate an integrated program guide. An integrated program guide providing method for providing matching information including a step may be provided.

According to the above-described problem solving means of the present invention, by providing matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content, it is possible to easily select the desired content without moving between nodes of the broadcast guide.

In addition, according to the above-described problem solving means of the present invention, even if the purpose of the content selection is unclear, the user can easily access the desired content between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content.

In addition, according to the above-described problem solving means of the present invention, by displaying the matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content on the back of the three-dimensional grid cube, the matching information can be effectively confirmed, and intuitively through the motion sensing remote control You can control the program guide.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to clearly describe the present invention, and like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when a part is referred to as being "connected" to another part, it includes not only "directly connected" but also "electrically connected" with another part in between . In addition, when a part is said to "include" a certain component, which means that it may further include other components, except to exclude other components unless otherwise stated.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an IPTV broadcasting system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the IPTV broadcasting system includes a broadcaster 1000, a headend system 2000, a network 3000, and a user terminal 4000.

In addition, the headend system 2000 includes a baseband system 2100, a compression multiplexing system 2200, a conditional access system (CAS) 2300, a back office system 2400, a monitoring system 2500, A Media Management Core (MOC) 2600 and an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) system 2700.

The broadcaster 1000 serves to produce, edit, and change broadcast content to provide to the headend system 2000. The broadcaster 1000 may include a program provider (PP), a terrestrial wave, or a content provider (CP). In addition, the broadcast content provided by the broadcaster 1000 may include existing broadcast content and rich content on the Internet.

The headend system 2000 receives and manages broadcast content from the broadcaster 1000 and distributes content to the user terminal 4000 to provide broadcast / recording / playback services. The received broadcast content may include related additional information and an EPG for this additional information.

The head-end system 2000 includes EPG information (PSIP / PSI /) including a subscriber concentrator, a broadcast video and audio signal, data broadcasting data, and a program recommendation service menu through a router supporting a multicast routing protocol. SI information) can be transmitted to IP set-top boxes of multiple subscribers by multicasting.

The baseband system 2100 receives an MPEG2 broadcast signal from an external program provider (PP) or an analog broadcast signal from terrestrial waves, converts the received source broadcast signal into a SDI (Serial Digital Interface) signal, and converts a frame ( Frames), and distributes video and audio signals from multiple broadcast channels (e.g. 100 channels) via a routine switcher, subtitle generator (CG) and automatic program controller (APC). At least one of an advertisement, a logo, or a subtitle is inserted into the broadcast video and audio signal (signal editing and processing) and transmitted to the compression multiplexing system 2200.

The SDI (Serial Digital Interface) signal is, for example, a digital signal standard having a transmission rate of 270 Mbps, and a composite digital video and four channels of digital audio signals may be mixed.

The baseband system 2100 is basically a tuner for receiving an analog broadcast signal through a receiving device (eg, a DS-3 station, a Yagi antenna, and an IRD) that receives broadcast signals such as a program provider (PP) and terrestrial wave, respectively. (Tuner)), a frame synchronizer for converting and correcting a source signal received from a receiving device into an SDI signal, synchronizing frames, and A connecting / centralizing all broadcast signal channels for operation management. A signal splitter such as a / V router, and a subtitle generator for inserting an advertisement, a logo, and a subtitle into the SDI signal to edit and process the signal.

The compression multiplexing system 2200 uses an A / V encoder (A / V Encoder) for broadcasting video and audio signals (Video, Audio) received from the baseband system 2100 for each broadcasting channel (eg, 100 channels). ) To compress the SDI (Serial Digital Interface) video signal to H.264, and to compress the audio signal to MPEG-2 AAC to generate MPEG-2 TS (Transport Stream), and to compress compressed broadcast video and audio -2 after multiplexing data broadcasting data and EPG information (PSIP / PSI / SI information) generated by a data encoder and a PSI / SI generator together with the TS signal When the received MPEG-2 TS signal is used in the reception restriction technique, the TS-2 may be inputted to a scrambler, encrypted, and finally IP packetized to transmit an IP packetized TS (Transport Stream) broadcast signal.

Also, optionally, the reception restriction system 2300 may be used to prevent illegal viewing and illegal copying of program recommended content.

The reception restriction system 2300 performs encryption of the real-time channel and pre-encryption of the VOD content, and controls viewing authority so that only the authenticated user can use the channel and the content. In order to prevent illegal copying of IPTV content, a digital rights management (DRM) scheme may be used instead of the reception restriction system 2300.

The back office system 2400 is a provisioning system and provides a billing processing function for the use of the IPTV program service for each subscriber.

The monitoring system 2500 is a control system. The monitoring system 2500 may monitor a transmission failure of an A / V broadcast signal for IPTV broadcasting, a reception failure by monitoring a downlink of an IPTV headend system, and confirmation of a subtitle.

The media management system 2600 is a system that manages various business process information (program organization information, location information, contract information, product information, etc.) for operating a broadcasting business. The media management system 2600 integrates and manages the information flow through organic coupling with each system in the center of the broadcasting center.

The media management system 2600 manages broadcast program organization information, content and media management information, contract information of a program provider (PP) and a content provider (CP), product information, and manages each system in the center of a broadcasting center. Through organic integration, it can act as a coordinator to manage and manage the flow of information.

In addition, the media management system 2600 includes contract management, media and content metadata management, EPG information acquisition / management as broadcasting schedule information, and real-time broadcasting and VOD in terms of operation. It provides channel formation management, agent management, interworking with each subsystem, VOD catalog creation management, and various product management.In terms of analysis, marketing analysis reporting, delivery such as settlement of CP / CA, subscriber viewing propensity, etc. In terms of broadcasting transmission monitoring, video server transmission management and VOD subscriber authentication, transmission result recording / management for settlement with CP / CA, and data synchronization with each subsystem connected.

The integrated EPG system 2700 includes an EPG server and provides an electronic program guide (EPG) service to the user terminal 4000.

The integrated EPG system 2700 may provide a real-time broadcast guide, a VOD broadcast guide, and a data broadcast service guide, and may provide matching information between a real-time broadcast program and VOD content by overlapping the EPG screen. In addition, the integrated EPG system 2700 may provide a real-time broadcast guide, a VOD broadcast guide, and a data broadcast guide in a three-dimensional grid EPG.

The network 3000 receives broadcast content from the headend system 2000 and delivers the received broadcast content to the user terminal 4000. The network network 3000 includes a backbone network and an access network, and the access network includes Ethernet, xDSL (ADSL, VDSL), Hybrid Fiber Coaxial Ca (HFC), and Fiber To The Curb), and may be configured in any one topology of a fiber to the home (FTTH) structure.

The user terminal 4000 is an apparatus for using an Internet broadcasting service, and generally includes an IPTV, a set top box (STB), and a remote controller 4100. The IPTV outputs broadcast content received from the headend system 2000 and transmits a user response signal received through the remote controller 4100 to the headend system 2000 through a return channel of the set top box.

The remote controller 4100 may detect its own motion using a motion sensor and control the set top box using the detected motion signal. The motion sensor refers to all sensors that recognize the movement, impact, tilt, and the like of the remote controller 4100, and may include, for example, any one or more of an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, and a tilt sensor. In addition, the remote controller 4100 generates a motion detection signal by detecting, for example, a moving distance of X, Y, and Z axes, a moving acceleration, a tilt, or a rotation angle, and sets the box using the generated motion detection signal. Can be controlled. Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described as detecting the operation of the remote controller 4100 using a motion sensor in the remote controller 4100, the posture or operation of the remote controller 4100 using a sensor located outside the remote controller 4100. You can also detect

Accordingly, the user can freely select desired content in the grid-type EPG displayed on the IPTV screen by using the movement of the remote controller 4100.

The user terminal 4000 may use any one of a TV in which the IP STB is embedded or an IP set top box (IP STB), a computer, a notebook computer, or a personal portable terminal connected to the user's TV.

In addition, the IP set-top box is a hardware layer composed of STB hardware such as CPU, media processor, flash RAM, Ethernet module, system software layer including device driver and system software such as operating system, Java Virtual Machine (JVM) ), Middle access layer with conditional access system (CAS) module and digital rights management (DRM) interface module, streaming protocol (RTP, RTSP), MPEG2, MPEG4, MPEG7, H.264, It may include four layers of an application layer that supports various multi codecs such as WMV-9 and includes an electronic program guide (EPG) for selecting an IPTV service channel. In this case, the subscriber's IP set-top box may be assigned an IPv4 address or an IPv6 address.

Hereinafter, a detailed configuration of the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

2 is a detailed block diagram of the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a real time broadcast DB 2710, a VOD broadcast DB 2720, a data broadcast DB 2730, and a real time broadcast guide generator ( 2740, a VOD broadcast guide generator 2750, a data broadcast guide generator 2760, a content matcher 2770, a content matcher DB 2780, and an integrated program guide generator 2790.

The real time broadcast DB 2710 stores information about a real time broadcast program. The real time broadcast DB 2710 may store information such as a broadcast program name, a broadcast channel, and a broadcast time.

The VOD broadcast DB 2720 stores information about VOD content. The VOD content is content that can be freely viewed at a desired time by the user, and includes a re-broadcast of a video produced by a movie or broadcaster. In addition, the VOD broadcast DB 2720 may store information such as a VOD content name, a category name, and a service providing period.

The data broadcast DB 2730 stores information about a bidirectional data broadcast. Two-way data broadcasting includes various home services such as games, shopping, or internet banking, and can be classified by service characteristics. Also, the data broadcast DB 2730 may store program specific information / service information (SI).

The real-time broadcast guide generator 2740 generates a real-time broadcast guide by using information about a real-time broadcast program. The real-time broadcast guide generator 2740 may generate a real-time broadcast guide by arranging program names to be broadcast for each channel and broadcast time. The real-time broadcast guide is a schedule for channels and programs currently viewable in real time, and information may be provided at a level at which a list and detailed information about a program can be viewed. In addition, the real-time broadcast guide generator 2740 may provide the generated real-time broadcast guide to the integrated program guide generator 2790.

The VOD broadcast guide generator 2750 generates a VOD broadcast guide by classifying VOD contents by category. The VOD broadcast guide generator 2750 may classify the VOD content into upper and lower categories, and generate the VOD broadcast guide in a tree structure. Accordingly, the user may sequentially move between nodes to access specific categories or contents in order to find specific contents in the VOD broadcast guide. In addition, the VOD broadcast guide generator 2750 provides the generated VOD content broadcast guide to the integrated program guide generator 2790.

The data broadcast guide generation unit 2760 generates a broadcast service guide by using information about bidirectional data broadcasting. In addition, through the data broadcast service guide generated by the data broadcast guide generator 2760, a user may easily access various services such as a game, shopping, or internet banking.

The content matching unit 2770 matches content related to each other among the real-time broadcasting program and the VOD content.

The content matching unit 2770 may search for VOD content associated with the real-time broadcast program in the VOD broadcast DB 2720 or the VOD broadcast guide using all or a part of the program name of the real-time broadcast program as a keyword, and search for the found VOD content. Match with a real-time broadcast program. For example, in order to match VOD content related to a real-time broadcasting program called 'Animal Kingdom', the content matching unit 2770 may search for 'animal' as a keyword. As a result, the searched 'animal world' VOD content such as' or 'animal farm' may be matched with the 'animal kingdom'.

In addition, the content matching unit 2770 may search for a broadcast program associated with the real-time broadcast program in the real-time broadcast DB 2710 or the real-time broadcast program guide by using the content name or category name of the VOD content as a search word. The program may match the VOD broadcast content.

In addition, the content matching unit 2770 may variously match the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content based on various criteria and algorithms.

Since the content matching unit 2770 generates matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content, when the real-time broadcast is selected while searching for the VOD content, or the VOD content is selected while searching for the real-time broadcast program, the content is matched with the broadcast. You can easily select the content you want without having to move between nodes in the guide.

The content matching DB 2780 stores matching information between the real-time broadcasting program and the VOD content, and provides the stored matching information to the integrated program guide generator 2790.

The integrated program guide generation unit 2790 generates an integrated program guide based on real-time broadcast guide information, VOD broadcast guide information, data broadcast service guide information, and matching information. In addition, the integrated program guide generator 2790 may generate the integrated program guide by variously disposing guide information on each surface of the three-dimensional lattice cube.

The integrated program guide generator 2790 may arrange a real-time broadcast program guide on the first side of the EPG cube, a VOD broadcast guide on the second side, and a bidirectional data broadcast guide on the third side. In addition, the integrated program guide generator 2790 may arrange program information for each channel or time along the left, right side, or upper and lower sides of the cube in displaying the details of the real-time broadcast program. Furthermore, in displaying the details of the VOD content, the integrated program guide generator 2790 may arrange the VOD content information for each category or content list along the left, right, or upper and lower sides of the cube.

In addition, the integrated program guide generator 2790 may provide matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content, and provide a link to facilitate movement between the matched real-time broadcast program and the VOD content. For example, the integrated program guide generation unit 2790 displays detailed information of a real-time broadcast program (eg, 'Animal Kingdom') on the front of the cube, and matches the VOD matched with the real-time broadcast program displayed on the back of the cube. You can display information about the content (e.g. 'Animal World', 'Animal Land') and provide a link to view information about the selected VOD content when selecting the VOD content displayed on the back of the cube. can do.

Therefore, when searching for content through the program guide, it is possible to easily select the content regardless of the real-time broadcast service and the VOD broadcast service, and in particular, may not move between many nodes of the broadcast guide.

In addition, the integrated program guide generator 2790 may be located in the user terminal 4000. In this case, the user terminal 4000 receives a guide information receiver (not shown) and matching information for receiving real-time broadcast guide information, VOD broadcast guide information, and data broadcast service guide information from the integrated EPG system 2000, which is an external server. It may further include a matching information receiving unit (not shown), the integrated program guide generation unit 2790 may generate the integrated program guide in three dimensions based on the guide information and matching information received from the guide information receiving unit and the matching information receiving unit. Can be.

Detailed configuration and operation of the integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described later.

Hereinafter, the content matching information table stored in the content matching DB 2780 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B.

3A and 3B are examples of a content matching information table stored in a content matching DB 2780 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3A, VOD broadcast contents may be classified by category, and information about a real-time broadcast program matched with each content may be stored together. In addition, a real-time broadcast program matching each VOD content may be searched using the content name or category name of each VOD content as a keyword.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 3B, real-time broadcast programs may be classified by channel, date, and time, and information on VOD content matched by each broadcast program may be stored together. In addition, the VOD content matching each real-time broadcasting program may be searched using the program name of each real-time broadcasting program as a keyword. In addition, the VOD content matching the real-time broadcast program may be searched by using the broadcasting station name, the type of the broadcast program (sports, drama, movie), etc. in addition to the program name of each real-time broadcast program.

The matching information between the real time broadcast program and the VOD content may be displayed on the back of the integrated program guide and used to provide a link between the real time broadcast program and the VOD content.

Hereinafter, a real time broadcast program and VOD content matched by the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4.

4 is an example of a diagram illustrating a relationship between real-time broadcast programs and VOD contents matched by the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 4, the VOD contents of the VOD broadcast guide may be matched with each other and linked to the broadcast program. Therefore, when the real time broadcast is selected while searching for VOD content on the VOD broadcast guide, or when the VOD content is selected while using the real time broadcast guide, even if the structures of the real time broadcast guide and the VOD broadcast guide are different from each other, the node of the broadcast guide node. You can easily select the content you want without moving between them.

In addition, even if the purpose of content selection is unclear, only the vague needs of a user can easily access desired contents between the real-time broadcasting program and the VOD content.

Hereinafter, an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 5.

5 is an example of an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 5, a real-time broadcast program guide is provided on the first side 50 of the integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention, a VOD broadcast guide is provided on the second side 52, and a third side 54 is located on the third side 54. The interactive data broadcast guide may be displayed. In this case, the user can rotate the grid EPG by moving the remote controller 4100 up, down, left, and right, and can easily select a real-time broadcast program guide, a VOD broadcast guide, and a bidirectional data broadcast guide.

Hereinafter, an example of a method of providing matching information in an integrated program guide screen according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 6.

6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method for providing matching information in an integrated program guide screen according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 6, information regarding 'real time broadcast program C' may be displayed on the front side 60 of the integrated program guide, and the back side 62 is matched with the 'broadcast program C' on the front side 60. Information about 'content f-3' may be displayed. In addition, the content information of the back side 62 may be displayed semi-transparently, and the back side 60 of the lattice cube is zoomed in to the front side 60 by pulling and pushing the remote controller 4100. It may be zoomed out and may be displayed on the screen to overlap the front surface 62.

Therefore, the matched real-time broadcast program and the information on the VOD content can be displayed superimposed on the three-dimensional screen, and the contents can be easily enlarged or reduced by using the movement of the remote controller 4100.

In FIG. 6, although the detailed information of the specific broadcast program is described as being displayed on the front side 60 of the integrated program guide, the upper screen of the real-time broadcast program guide is displayed on the front side 60 of the guide. When a specific program is selected in the upper screen or the cursor is moved to the specific program, information on the VOD content matched to the selected specific program may be displayed on the back side 60 of the guide.

Hereinafter, an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B.

7A and 7B are examples of an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to another embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7A, information about a real time broadcast program may be displayed on each side of an integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In displaying the details of the live broadcast program on each side of the grid cube, the live broadcast program based on the channel is displayed along the left and right sides of the cube, and the time-based live broadcast program is displayed along the upper and lower surfaces of the cube. I can display it.

Accordingly, the cube can be rotated left and right by moving the remote controller 4100 left and right to check a real time broadcast program on another channel, and the real time broadcast program of an adjacent channel can be easily identified. In addition, the user can rotate the cube up and down by moving the remote controller 4100 up and down in order to check the information on the real-time broadcast program in another time zone, it is possible to easily check the real-time broadcast program in the adjacent time zone.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 7B, information about VOD broadcast content may be displayed on each side of the integrated program guide according to another embodiment of the present invention.

In this case, in displaying the details of the VOD content on each side of the lattice cube, the VOD contents are displayed by changing the categories along the left and right sides of the cube, and the VOD according to the same level of content list along the upper and lower sides of the cube. The contents may be displayed in order (for example, in FIG. 4, the contents may be displayed in the order of the contents 1, 2, 3, 4, 5).

Accordingly, the user can rotate the grid EPG by moving the remote controller 4100 up, down, left and right, and can easily search for desired VOD content. In particular, even if the VOD content belonging to another category, if the VOD content of the same level, it is possible to easily select the desired VOD content even if the category is not moved between the upper and lower nodes.

In other words, the program guide in the form of a lattice cube can be rotated up, down, left, and right according to the operation of the remote controller 4100, and the user can intuitively control the program guide using the remote controller 4100.

Hereinafter, a method of generating an integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 8.

8 is a detailed flowchart of a method of generating an integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Step S800 is a step of generating a real time broadcast guide. In operation S800, a real-time broadcast guide may be generated using program names, channel information, broadcast date information, and broadcast time information of the real-time broadcast program.

Step S802 is a step of generating a VOD broadcast guide. In operation S802, the VOD broadcast guide may be generated in a tree structure by using the content name of the VOD content, the upper and lower categories, and the playing time.

Step S804 is a step of generating a data broadcast service guide. The interactive data broadcast includes various home services such as games, shopping, or internet banking. In operation S806, a broadcast service guide may be generated using information about the interactive data broadcast.

Step S808 is a step of matching the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content. In step S808, using the program name of the real-time broadcast program as a keyword, the VOD content associated with the real-time broadcast program may be searched for in the VOD broadcast DB 2720 or the VOD broadcast guide, and the searched VOD content may be matched with the real-time broadcast program. have. In operation S808, the broadcast program associated with the real-time broadcast program may be searched for in the real-time broadcast DB 2710 or the real-time broadcast program guide using the content name or category name of the VOD content as a keyword, and the searched broadcast program may be searched for in a VOD broadcast. Match content.

Step S808 is a step of generating a program guide in the form of a three-dimensional grid cube. In operation S808, a real-time broadcast guide, a VOD broadcast guide, and a data broadcast guide may be disposed on each surface of the 3D grid cube.

Further, in step S808, the details of the live broadcast program can be displayed on each side of the grid cube, the live broadcast program based on the channel is displayed along the left and right sides of the cube, and the time is displayed along the top and bottom of the cube. One real time broadcast program can be displayed.

Further, in step S808, the details of the VOD content can be displayed on each side of the cube, the VOD contents are displayed by changing the categories along the left and right sides of the cube, and the categories of the same level along the upper and lower sides of the cube. VOD content can be displayed in sequence according to the content list of

The program guide in the form of a grid-shaped cube generated in step S808 may be rotated up, down, left, and right according to the operation of the remote controller 4100. Accordingly, the user can intuitively control the program guide using the remote controller 4100. .

Step S810 is a step of adding matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the VOD content to the generated program guide.

In operation S810, specific broadcast program information may be displayed on the front side of the integrated program guide, and information on content matched with the broadcast program on the front side may be displayed on the back side. In addition, in step S810, the content information on the back side may be displayed (transparently) so as to overlap the front side, and the back side of the grid-like cube is zoomed in the front direction as needed by pulling and pushing the remote controller 4100. (zoom-in) or zoom-out (zoom-out) can be.

Accordingly, the matched real-time broadcast program and the information on the VOD content may be displayed together on one screen, and the user may easily check the matched information by using the movement of the remote controller 4100.

One embodiment of the present invention may also be embodied in the form of a recording medium including instructions executable by a computer, such as program modules, being executed by a computer. Computer readable media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer and includes both volatile and nonvolatile media, removable and non-removable media. In addition, the computer-readable medium may include both computer storage media and communication media. Computer storage media includes both volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data. Communication media typically includes any information delivery media, including computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave, or other transport mechanism.

The foregoing description of the present invention is intended for illustration, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be easily modified in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features of the present invention. will be. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive. For example, each component described as a single entity may be distributed and implemented, and components described as being distributed may also be implemented in a combined form.

The scope of the present invention is shown by the following claims rather than the above description, and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention. do.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an IPTV broadcasting system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a detailed block diagram of an integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3A and 3B are examples of a content matching information table stored in a content matching DB 2780 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is an example of a diagram showing a relationship between real-time broadcast program and VOD content matched by the integrated EPG system 2700 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is an example of an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 illustrates an example of a method for providing matching information in an integrated program guide screen according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7A to 7B are examples of an integrated program guide generated in a three-dimensional lattice form according to another embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a detailed flowchart of a method of generating an integrated program guide according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (15)

In the integrated program guide providing system for providing matching information, A real time broadcast guide generation unit for generating guide information on a real time broadcast program; VOD broadcast guide generation unit for generating guide information on VOD (Video On Demand) content, A content matching unit which matches the real-time broadcasting program and the V-audio content; An integrated program including the guide information on the real-time broadcast program, the guide information on the V-audio content and the information related to the matching, and generating an integrated program guide providing a link between the matched real-time broadcast content and the V-audio content. Program guide generator Integrated program guide providing system comprising a. The method of claim 1, And the content matching unit searches for the V-audio content matching the real-time broadcasting program using the program name of the real-time broadcasting as a keyword. The method of claim 1, And the content matching unit searches for the real-time broadcasting program matching the V-audio content using the category name of the V-audio content as a keyword. In the integrated program guide providing terminal for providing matching information, A guide information receiver configured to receive guide information about a real-time broadcast program and guide information about VOD content; A matching information receiver configured to receive matching information between the real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content; An integrated program including the guide information on the received real-time broadcast program, guide information on the V-audio content and the matching information, and generating an integrated program guide providing a link between the matched real-time broadcast content and the V-audio content. Program guide generator Integrated program guide providing terminal comprising a. The method of claim 4, wherein The matching information is the integrated program guide providing terminal which is information on the V-audio content retrieved using the program name of the real-time broadcast as a keyword. The method of claim 4, wherein And the matching information is information about a real-time broadcasting program searched using the category name of the VOD content as a keyword. The method of claim 4, wherein The integrated program guide generation unit for displaying the information on the real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content on a three-dimensional grid guide screen. The method of claim 7, wherein The integrated program guide generation unit displays information about the real-time broadcast program on a first surface of the three-dimensional grid guide screen, and the V matched with the real-time broadcast program on a second surface facing the first surface. Integrated program guide providing terminal to display the information on the audio content by overlapping. The method of claim 7, wherein The integrated program guide generation unit displays the information on the V-audio content on the first surface of the three-dimensional grid guide screen, the real-time matching the V-audio content on the second surface facing the first surface Integrated program guide providing terminal to display the information about the broadcast program in a transparent manner. 10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, The integrated program guide generation unit to the second surface is enlarged or reduced in the direction of the first surface. 11. The method of claim 10, And the second surface is enlarged or reduced in the direction of the first surface in response to the pulling and pushing movement of the remote control including the motion sensor. The method of claim 4, wherein The integrated program guide generation unit displays guide information about the real-time broadcast program on a three-dimensional grid-shaped guide screen, and sequentially performs information on the real-time broadcast program according to a channel or a time along the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the three-dimensional grid. Integrated program guide providing terminal to be displayed. The method of claim 4, wherein The integrated program guide generation unit displays guide information about the VOD content on a 3D grid guide screen, and displays information about VAudio content according to a category or a content list along the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the 3D grid. Integrated program guide providing terminal to be displayed sequentially. In the integrated program guide providing method for providing matching information, Generating guide information about a live broadcast program; Generating guide information about VOD content, Matching the related real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content with each other; and Generating an integrated program guide by setting a link between the matched real-time broadcast content and the V-audio content, including guide information on the real-time broadcast program, guide information on the V-audio content, and information on the matching. Integrated program guide providing method comprising a. 15. The method of claim 14, The matching may include matching the real-time broadcast program and the V-audio content with each other using the program name of the real-time broadcast program or the category name of the V-audio content as a search keyword.

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