KR20040058450A - Set Top Box and controlling method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are a broadcast receiving apparatus and a control method thereof. A broadcast receiving device connected to a program providing server through a network, the broadcast receiving device comprising: a first storage unit which is divided by a boot program and an address for initialization of a broadcast receiving device and stores an application program, and upgrade data and upgrade data related to the application program are stored; A communication interface for performing data communication with a program providing server providing address information on a predetermined area of a first storage to be stored; a second storage for temporarily storing upgrade data and address information transmitted through the communication interface; When the address information corresponding to the predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data temporarily stored in the storage unit is to be confirmed by the boot program, the controller to store the upgrade data in a predetermined area of the first storage unit corresponding to the confirmed address information. It includes. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to download an application program at high speed.

Description

Broadcasting receiver and control method {Set Top Box and controlling method

The present invention relates to a broadcast receiving apparatus and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a broadcast receiving apparatus and a control method capable of downloading and storing an application program corresponding to a required area through a multi-interface.

A broadcast receiving device for restoring a compressed signal transmitted from a program providing server through a digital network to an original video signal and an audio signal may be referred to as a set top box.

Recent set-top boxes are equipped with a terminal device capable of communicating with a digital network to provide a function of building a video on demand system (VOD system). In addition, the set-top box is capable of data communication through the Internet, it can be used as the Internet user interface (internet user interface) by connecting the set-top box and the television. In addition, the television connected to the set-top box performs the function of a web television (web television).

In order to perform these various functions, a boot program and a main program are built in the set-top box. The boot program is used to initialize the set-top box. An application program is a program for executing various functions of the set-top box. Examples of the application program may include software such as a user interface (UI), an electronic program guide (EPG), and an on-screen display (OSD) program that can be changed according to user requirements. .

Boot programs and application programs are generally stored in a storage medium provided in the set-top box during the mass production process. In addition, in the case of an application program can be upgraded, it is common to download and upgrade from an external program providing server by the user's request or self-determination of the set-top box. In addition, it is also common to download a new application program from an external program providing server that is not stored in the storage medium during the mass production process.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a connection state between a conventional set-top box and a program providing server for downloading an application program.

Referring to FIG. 1, the conventional set top box 10 includes a control unit 11 for controlling the overall operation of the set top box and a plurality of information including a boot program and an application program under the control of the control unit 11. Memory 12 to be stored.

In order to download an application, data communication is performed between the set-top box 10 and the program providing server 30 through Ethernet, serial, baseband, and over-the-air. Is done. Here, since data communication through Ethernet, serial, baseband, OTA, etc. is easily known by those skilled in the art, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

For example, in the case of upgrading the application program using the serial interface 20, the download of the application program is performed under the control of the control unit 11 after booting is preceded by the boot program and stored in a predetermined storage medium. do.

However, the conventional set-top box is set to download an application program using only one interface even if a plurality of communication interfaces for downloading an application program are provided. In addition, when upgrading an application program, not only the part requiring the upgrade is downloaded, but the entire application program is downloaded. In other words, when the capacity of an application program is large, a bottleneck occurs by downloading the entire application program using only one interface, which causes a large time load on the download.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a broadcast receiving apparatus and a control method thereof capable of improving the download speed of an application program and releasing the time load required for downloading.

1 is a block diagram showing a connection state between a conventional set-top box and a program providing server for downloading an application program;

2 is a block diagram of an upgrade system to which a broadcast receiving apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied;

3 is a block diagram showing a broadcast receiving apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

4 is a schematic diagram showing a data structure of the memory of FIG. 3, and

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of downloading an application program to the broadcast receiving apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

Description of the main parts of the drawing

100: transmitter 200: program providing server

300: set-top box 330: first storage

340: communication interface unit 350: second storage unit

360: command authorization unit 370: control unit

According to the broadcast receiving apparatus according to the present invention for solving the above technical problem, the broadcast receiving apparatus is connected to a program providing server through a network, and receives a broadcast signal from a transmitter through a tuner, the broadcast receiving apparatus A first storage unit for storing a boot program for initialization of a program and an application program for performing a function of the broadcast receiving apparatus divided by addresses, and a predetermined first storage unit for storing upgrade data and the upgrade data related to the application program At least one communication interface for performing data communication with the program providing server for providing address information on an area; a second storage unit for temporarily storing the upgrade data and the address information transmitted through the communication interface; Temporarily stored in the second storage unit When the address information corresponding to the predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data is to be stored is confirmed by the boot program, the upgrade data is stored in the predetermined area of the first storage unit corresponding to the confirmed address information. It includes a control unit.

In more detail, when the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal to the program providing server for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data through at least one communication interface unit, wherein the program providing server is configured to include at least one The communication interface unit is selected to divide and transmit the upgrade data.

Further, the upgrade data having the address information is temporarily stored in the second storage unit under the control of the controller from the program providing server to the transmitter.

In addition, when the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal to the program providing server for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data through at least one of the communication interface unit and the transmitter, and the program providing server transmits the communication. At least one of an interface unit and the transmitter is selected to separately transmit the upgrade data.

The program providing server also transmits capacity information of the upgrade data through the communication interface unit.

On the other hand, in order to solve the technical problem as described above, the first storage unit in which the boot program and the application program according to the present invention is stored, at least one communication interface for communicating with the program providing server through the network and the control unit A control method of a broadcast receiving apparatus having a control unit, the method comprising: initializing the broadcast receiving apparatus by the boot program; and a predetermined area of the first storage unit to store upgrade data and the upgrade data related to the application program. Downloading address information about the server from the program providing server through at least one communication interface, temporarily storing the downloaded upgrade data and the address information, and storing the upgrade data by the boot program. The first bottom Checking the address information of a negative predetermined area; and if the address information is confirmed by the boot program, storing the upgrade data in a predetermined area of the first storage unit corresponding to the confirmed address information. do.

In more detail, when the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal to the program providing server for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data through at least one communication interface unit, wherein the program providing server is configured to include at least one The communication interface unit is selected to divide and transmit the upgrade data.

The program providing server also transmits capacity information of the upgrade data through the communication interface unit.

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

2 is a block diagram of an upgrade system to which a broadcast reception device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

2, the broadcast receiving device 300 is interconnected with the program providing server 200 through a network communication network, and receives a broadcast signal from the transmitter 100. In general, the set-top box 300 and the program providing server 200 are connected to communicate through a communication network such as an Ethernet LAN, a serial interface, and a baseband interface.

The transmitter 100 transmits a broadcast signal through a terrestrial wave, a cable, a satellite, and the like.

The broadcast receiving device 300 processes a signal such as an infrared ray received from an external input device (not shown), and digitally broadcasts a channel tuned through a tuner (not shown) among a plurality of digital signals transmitted from the transmitter 100. A set-top box or a digital TV that displays a signal on a display unit (not shown).

In addition, the broadcast receiving apparatus (hereinafter, referred to as "set top box") 300 initializes the set top box 300 by a pre-stored boot program and provides a plurality of functions by the pre-stored application program.

The program providing server 200 has a database 210 for storing upgrade data or a new application program for a plurality of application programs among the programs built in the set-top box 300. . Upgrade information or a new application for a plurality of applications stored in the DB 210 is transmitted to the set-top box 300 through the network communication network or the transmitter 100 described above.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the set top box shown in FIG. 2.

2 and 3, the set top box 300 includes an antenna 310, a tuner 320, a first storage unit 330, first to n-th communication interface units 340, and a second storage unit ( 350, a command applier 360 and a controller 370.

The boot program and at least one application program are stored in the first storage unit 330 under the control of the controller 370 to be described later. The boot program is a program for initializing (or booting) the set-top box 300 when power is applied to the set-top box 300. The application program is a program for providing various additional functions of the set-top box 300, for example, software such as a UI, EPG, OSD program.

4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a data structure of a first storage unit illustrated in FIG. 3.

Referring to FIG. 4, the first storage unit 330 is a flash memory and has a total storage capacity of 4 MBytes. Since the capacity of the boot program stored in a predetermined area of the first storage unit 330 is about 128 KBytes, the boot program is recorded at 7FC0 0000 at 7FC0 0000 and the application program is recorded at the address of 7FC2 0000. At this time, the predetermined portion of the application program has an address corresponding thereto. In addition, in the case of flash memory, the total storage capacity can be adaptively changed according to the specifications such as 1MByte, 2MByte, 4Mbyte.

The first to n th communication interface unit 340 communicates data with the program providing server 200 that provides address information about a predetermined area of the first storage unit 330 in which the upgrade data and upgrade data related to the application program are to be stored. The interface to perform Examples of the use of the first to n th communication interface unit 340 include serial communication, Ethernet communication, communication using baseband, and the like. Although the first to n th communication interface unit 340 is shown in the drawing only in the set-top box 300, it is preferable that the same first to n th communication interface unit (not shown) is provided in the program providing server 200. .

In detail, when upgrade data of some files stored in 'Address 1' of FIG. 4 among predetermined applications stored in the first storage unit 330 is generated, the program providing server 200 may not only generate the upgrade data. In addition, the location information 'Address 1' where the generated upgrade data is stored and / or capacity information of the upgrade data is also provided. The provided data is downloaded through at least one of the first to n th communication interface units 340. In addition, new application programs not stored in the first storage unit 330 may be downloaded together with the address information of the first storage unit 330.

In addition, the upgrade data related to the application program can be downloaded from the broadcasting station or satellite through the tuner 320 through the transmitter 100 as well as the first through n-th communication interface 340, and the upgrade data as described above is The address information to be stored and / or the capacity information of the upgrade data are also packetized and downloaded. Downloading from the transmitter 100 can be used by an over-the-air (OTA) scheme.

Here, the address information may be defined and transmitted according to a predetermined protocol standard, and a description thereof will be omitted since anyone related to the related art can easily know.

Various data downloaded from the program providing server 200 are stored in the second storage unit 350 under the control of the controller 370. In the present invention, upgrade data related to an application program stored in the first storage unit 330, or a new application program is downloaded and stored. Of course, the address information and / or capacity information of the upgrade data to be stored are also stored together. The second storage unit 350 preferably uses a static random access memory (SRAM).

The command application unit 360 is a predetermined operation button. When the command application unit 360 is selected by the user, the command application unit 360 applies the multi-split transmission selection signal to the program providing server 200. The multi-split transmission selection signal is a signal for selecting a path when predetermined upgrade data is downloaded from the program providing server 200 to the set-top box 300.

When this signal is transmitted, the program providing server 200 selects at least one communication interface unit (eg, 340a, 340b), or selects at least one communication interface (eg, 340a) and an OTA scheme. And the predetermined upgrade data are divided and transmitted. As a result, the download speed to the second storage unit 350 is improved.

Hereinafter, a case where upgrade data is downloaded will be described as an example.

The control unit 370 is a central processing unit for controlling the overall operation of the set-top box 300. The boot program of the present invention stores data for identifying address information and / or capacity information about an application program. Therefore, according to the execution of the boot program, the controller 370 may recognize / control upgrade data or new application program stored in the second storage 350.

In detail, the controller 370 may include address information (eg, 'address 1') corresponding to a predetermined area of the first storage unit 330 in which the upgrade data temporarily stored in the second storage unit 350 will be stored. When the capacity information of the upgrade data is confirmed by the boot program, the upgrade data may be upgraded by the capacity of the upgrade data in a predetermined area of the first storage unit 330 corresponding to the identified address information (eg, address 1). To be stored.

In other words, the upgrade data stored in the second storage unit 350 is stored from the storage location having 'address 1'. At this time, since the application program stored in the second storage unit 350 has an extension name of '.bin', the boot program searches for a '.bin' file among data stored in the second storage unit 350 to determine whether the application program. After confirming, check the address information.

In addition, in case of downloading two pieces of upgrade data having 'address 1' and 'address 2' respectively, for example, the first and the second from the program providing server 200 by the selection signal of the command application unit 360. When the communication interface units 340a and 340b are selected, the program providing server 200 upgrades data having 'address 1' as the first communication interface 340a and 'address 2' as the second communication interface 340b. Partition the upgrade data to be transmitted. As a result, the second storage unit 350 of the set-top box 300 has two upgrade data having 'address 1' and 'address 2' transmitted through the first and second communication interface units 340a and 340b, respectively. Is stored.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of downloading an application program to the set-top box shown in FIG. 3.

2 to 5, when power is applied to the set-top box 300 to perform a power on self test (S505), a boot program stored in the first storage unit 330 is executed to initialize the system. It becomes (S510).

The first storage unit 330 stores a boot program and at least one application program. When the boot program is executed, the controller 370 checks whether a signal indicating that a part to be upgraded among predetermined application programs stored in the first storage unit 330 is received from the program providing server 200 is received (S515).

If a signal indicating that a part to be upgraded is generated in step S510 is received, the command applier 360 is selected to determine whether the multi-split transmission selection signal is transmitted to the program providing server 200 (S520). When the multi-split transmission selection signal is transmitted in step S515, the display device (not shown) of the program providing server 200 displays a message for selecting at least one communication interface unit (eg, 340a). Then, the development environment of the program providing server 200 selects at least one communication interface unit (eg, 340a) according to the displayed message (S525).

The upgrade data is downloaded from the program providing server 200 to the second storage unit 350 of the set-top box 300 through at least one selected communication interface unit (for example, 340a) (S530). In addition to the upgrade data in operation S525, address information and / or capacity information of a predetermined area of the first storage unit 330 in which the upgrade data is to be stored are also downloaded.

For example, in operation S525, when the first communication interface unit 340a is selected, upgrade data related to the application program and address information and / or capacity information of the upgrade data related to the application program may be transmitted through the first communication interface unit 340a. Is downloaded. In addition, when the first and second communication interface units 340a and 340b are selected in operation S525, the program providing server 200 divides the upgrade data in a predetermined manner, and respectively, the first and second communication interface units 340a and 340b. Download via 340b).

The downloaded upgrade data, address information, and / or capacity information of the upgrade data are temporarily stored in the second storage unit 350 (S535).

When the step S530 is performed, the boot program checks the address information and data capacity of the upgrade data stored in the second storage unit 350 (S540). Then, the controller 370 causes the upgrade data to be stored in a predetermined region of the first storage unit 330 corresponding to the address information checked by the boot program (S545).

When step S540 is completed, the controller 370 temporarily stores upgrade data other than the upgrade data stored in the first storage unit 330 in the second storage unit 350 through a predetermined interface unit (for example, 340b). Check whether it is (S550). If it is determined in step S545 that the other upgrade data is temporarily stored, the control unit 370 executes steps S535 to S545 again.

On the other hand, if no signal is received in step S510, the set-top box 300 executes a broadcast program providing routine (S555). That is, the set top box 300 executes a broadcast program providing routine for a broadcast signal tuned by the tuner 320 among a plurality of broadcast signals received through the antenna 310.

In addition, if the command application unit 360 is not selected for a predetermined time in step S515 (S560), the program providing server 200 selects at least one communication interface unit (for example, 340a) to transmit the upgrade data ( S565).

Then, steps S535 to S550 are performed again.

Although the above has been shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments of the present invention, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above, it is usually in the art to which the invention belongs without departing from the spirit of the invention claimed in the claims. Anyone skilled in the art can make various modifications, as well as such modifications are within the scope of the claims.

According to the broadcast receiving apparatus and control method thereof according to the present invention, the application program for performing various functions of the broadcast receiving apparatus is divided and downloaded through at least one interface, and the download speed is improved by downloading only an upgraded part of the application program. This can eliminate the time load for downloading.

Claims (8)

In a broadcast receiving device connected to a program providing server through a network, and receiving a broadcast signal from a transmitter through a tuner, A first storage unit storing a boot program for initializing the broadcast receiving apparatus and an application program for performing a function of the broadcast receiving apparatus divided by addresses; At least one communication interface unit performing data communication with the program providing server that provides the address data of the upgraded data related to the application and a predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data is to be stored; A second storage unit for temporarily storing the upgrade data and the address information transmitted through the communication interface unit; And If the address information corresponding to a predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data temporarily stored in the second storage unit is to be stored is confirmed by the boot program, the first storage unit corresponding to the confirmed address information is predetermined. And a controller for storing the upgrade data in an area. The method of claim 1, When the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data to the program providing server through at least one communication interface unit, and the program providing server selects at least one communication interface unit. And transmitting the upgrade data in a divided manner. The method of claim 1, And the upgrade data having the address information is temporarily stored in the second storage unit under control of the controller from the program providing server to the transmitter. The method of claim 3, wherein When the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data through at least one of the communication interface unit and the transmitter to the program providing server, wherein the program providing server is the communication interface unit. And at least one of the transmitter to divide and transmit the upgrade data. The method of claim 1, The program providing server is a broadcast receiving device, characterized in that for transmitting the capacity information of the upgrade data via the communication interface. A control method of a broadcast receiving apparatus having a first storage unit for storing a boot program and an application program, at least one communication interface unit for communicating with a program providing server through a network, and a control unit for controlling each unit, Initializing the broadcast receiving apparatus by the boot program; Downloading, from at least one communication interface, upgrade data related to the application program and address information of a predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data is to be stored from the program providing server; Temporarily storing the downloaded upgrade data and the address information; Confirming, by the boot program, the address information of a predetermined area of the first storage unit in which the upgrade data is to be stored; And And if the address information is confirmed by the boot program, storing the upgrade data in a predetermined area of the first storage unit corresponding to the identified address information. The method of claim 6, When the boot program is executed, the controller transmits a selection signal for splitting and transmitting the upgrade data to the program providing server through at least one communication interface unit, and the program providing server selects at least one communication interface unit. And controlling transmission of the upgrade data. The method of claim 6, The program providing server is a control method of a broadcast receiving device, characterized in that for transmitting the capacity information of the upgrade data via the communication interface.