JP2000115725A - View limit device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the view limit device with enhanced user-friendliness where viewing of programs is not limited more than required. SOLUTION: A memory 5 stores a view limit level that sets a degree of view limit and non-viewing limit time zone and non-viewing limit channels to set a time zone and channels where no viewing is limited. A control section 4 controls a view limit section 2 to limit viewing of a program when a degree of view limit denoted by rating data exceeds the degree of view limit set at the view limit level at a time zone other than the non-viewing limit time zone and in channels other than the non-viewing limit channel.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a viewing restriction device for restricting viewing of a transmitted program.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the United States, information of an extended data service is superimposed on a television signal. Hereinafter, the extended data service information is referred to as XDS information. The XDS information is inserted in a vertical blanking period of a television signal. The XDS information includes various information such as a program name, a broadcast station name, and current time.

[0003] By the way, when a program to be broadcast is a program for adults including, for example, sexual expression or violent scenes, it is desirable to allow only persons over a predetermined age to view. It is. For this reason, the program broadcasting station voluntarily defines the strength of the stimulus such as the age at which viewing of the program including a sexual expression or a violent scene is permitted, and displays it on the screen. At the same time, as one of the XDS information, data indicating the intensity of the stimulus of the program (hereinafter referred to as rating data) is transmitted.

[0004] Thus, the degree of recommendation of each program is divided according to the strength of the stimulus. Specifically, each program is divided into programs that can be viewed regardless of age and programs that can be viewed if the user is 7 years old or older, depending on the rating data. For details of the XDS information, refer to EIA (Electric Industries Asso
ciation) -608.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an example of a conventional viewing restriction apparatus using rating data of XDS information. In FIG. 4, first, in step S1, a transmitted television signal is received and demodulated, and a video signal and an audio signal are output. Step S
At 2, the XDS information is decoded from the video signal.
In step S3, it is determined whether the XDS information is rating data. If it is not rating data, the process returns to step S1.

If the data is rating data, step S
At 4, it is determined whether the rating data is greater than a predetermined parental level. The predetermined parental level is set in advance by a parent or the like on a setting screen protected by a password or the like. If the setting is made to restrict the viewing of children under the age of 15 (the viewing is not restricted if they are 15 years of age or older), the 15-year-old becomes the viewing restriction level. The rating data being larger than the parental level means that the degree of parental level (age restriction) indicated by the rating data exceeds the parental level (age) set at the parental level. For example, if your rating data is for adults,
That is, they have exceeded the parental control level of 15 years old.

In step S4, if the rating data is larger than the predetermined parental level, step S5
Then, the video signal and the audio signal of the transmitted program are muted. This restricts viewing of the program, and returns to step S1. At the time of viewing restriction in step S5, display for requesting a password for releasing viewing restriction may be performed. On the other hand, if the rating data is not higher than the predetermined parental level, no muting is performed in step S6, or if muted, the muting is released and the process returns to step S1.

As described above, when a program whose rating data is higher than a predetermined viewing restriction level is restricted at the start of the program, then the program ends, and a program whose rating data is lower than the predetermined viewing restriction level is started. , The viewing restriction is released. With the conventional parental control device, just specify the parental control level,
The viewing of the program can be restricted.

[0009]

In the conventional parental control device described above, for example, a parental control level is set to "a program suitable for children from two to six years old" in a home with a child of six years old, for example. Consider the case. In this case,
When a program with a rating data with a large parental control level such as "for children 7 years old or older" is received, parental control is performed.

[0010] By the way, the proportion of programs broadcast together with rating data having a high parental control level such as "needs parental attention" generally increases as the night becomes late. As described above, in a home where the parental level is set to "a program suitable for children from 2 to 6 years old," a large number of programs are restricted when late at night. During late-night hours when a child goes to bed and it is unlikely that parental control is required, most programs will be parental controlled every time the channel is switched. There was a problem.

This problem can be solved by temporarily canceling the viewing restriction by inputting a password or the like. However, it is troublesome to input the password, and the problem of re-enabling the viewing restriction. There was a problem of forgetting to set. Also, there are many programs for which parental control is performed, for which it is determined that there is no need to restrict parental control for children. When a child watches such a program, it is necessary to temporarily perform a parental lock release operation each time the child starts the program. As in the related art, if the viewing restriction is set only by the rating data, the usability may be deteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a viewing restriction device for restricting viewing of a program based on rating data, thereby improving usability without unnecessarily restricting the viewing of the program. It is an object of the present invention to provide a viewing restriction device capable of performing the following.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, the present invention provides (a) a receiving section (1) for receiving and demodulating a television signal and outputting a video signal and an audio signal; ), A decoder (3) for decoding rating data for restricting viewing of a program included in the video signal, and a viewing restriction unit (2) for restricting a program to be viewed according to the rating data. In the restriction device, a memory (5) for storing a viewing restriction level for setting a degree of viewing restriction and a non-viewing restriction time zone for setting a time zone in which viewing restriction is not performed, and a time zone other than the non-viewing restriction time zone. And, when the degree of parental level indicated by the rating data exceeds the parental level set at the parental level, the parental level control unit controls the parental level control unit to restrict program viewing. (A) a receiving unit (1) that receives and demodulates a television signal and outputs a video signal and an audio signal. And a decoder (3) for decoding rating data for viewing restriction of a program included in the video signal, and a viewing restriction unit (2) for restricting a program to be viewed according to the rating data. A memory for storing a parental control level for setting a degree of parental control and a non-parental control channel for setting a channel for which parental control is not performed; a channel other than the non-parental control channel; When the parental level indicated by the data exceeds the parental level set at the parental level,
A viewing restriction device is provided which comprises a control unit (4) for controlling the viewing restriction unit so as to restrict viewing of a program.

[0014]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, a parental control device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the viewing restriction device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the viewing restriction device of the present invention, and FIG. 3 describes the operation of the viewing restriction device of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display for the display.

In FIG. 1, a receiving section 1 receives and demodulates a television signal, and outputs a video signal and an audio signal. The video signal is input to the parental control unit 2 and the decoder 3, and the audio signal is input to the parental control unit 2. The viewing restricting unit 2 mutes the video signal and the audio signal according to a command from the control unit 4. The muting of the video signal and the audio signal means not only that all of the video signal and the audio signal are blocked, but also that only a part of the video signal and the audio signal are blocked or that the video signal and the audio signal are changed. It includes all the processing for restricting the viewing of the video signal and the audio signal.

The video signal output from the viewing restriction unit 2 is
The data is input to a display unit 8 such as a cathode ray tube via a synthesizing unit 7.
The audio signal output from the viewing restriction unit 2 is transmitted to the speaker unit 9.
Is input to If the control unit 4 issues a command not to mute the video signal and the audio signal, the viewing control unit 2 does not mute the video signal and the audio signal.
The video signal and the audio signal are directly combined into the synthesizing unit 7 and the speaker unit 9
To supply. The synthesizing section 7 is a section for synthesizing an on-screen signal and a video signal, which will be described later. If the on-screen signal is not input, the synthesizing section 7 supplies the video signal to the display section 8 as it is.

The decoder 3 converts the input video signal into
The XDS information is extracted and decoded. As a result, rating data for restricting viewing is obtained, and the rating data is input to the control unit 4. The control unit 4 receives a user setting signal specified by a remote control transmitter (not shown) or various keys provided on the apparatus main body. The setting of the parental level is also input as a user setting signal by a remote control transmitter or the like.

The memory 5 stores the parental level set by the user via the control unit 4. As will be described in detail later, the memory 5 also stores information on a time zone in which viewing is not restricted (ie, a non-viewing restricted time zone) and a channel in which viewing is not restricted (ie, a non-viewing restricted channel). . The setting of the non-viewing restriction time zone and the non-viewing restriction channel are also input to the control unit 4 as a user setting signal by a remote control transmitter or the like, and are stored in the memory 5.

The control unit 4 controls the rating level at which the input rating data is stored in the memory 5 in a time zone other than the non-viewing restricted time zone stored in the memory 5 or in a channel other than the non-viewing restricted channel. Is determined. If the rating data exceeds the parental level, the parental control unit 2 is controlled so that parental control is performed on the program that is currently being viewed (to be viewed).

When various on-screen display commands are issued to the control unit 4 by a user setting signal, the control unit 4
Controls the on-screen signal generator 6 to generate a predetermined on-screen signal. The on-screen signal generator 6 inputs the on-screen signal to the synthesizer 7. The combining unit 7 combines the input video signal and the on-screen signal, and inputs the combined signal to the display unit 8. Thereby, the display unit 8
Displays an image on which an on-screen signal is superimposed. When muting is performed by the viewing restriction unit 2, only the on-screen signal may be displayed on the display unit 8.

The operation of the viewing restriction device of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In FIG. 2, first, in step S11, the transmitted television signal is received and demodulated, and a video signal and an audio signal are output. In step S12, XDS information is decoded from the video signal. In step S13, X
It is determined whether the DS information is rating data. If it is not rating data, the process returns to step S11.

If the data is rating data, step S
At 14, it is determined whether the rating data is greater than a predetermined parental level. The predetermined parental level is set in advance by a parent or the like on a setting screen protected by a password or the like. If the setting is made to restrict the viewing of children under the age of 15 (the viewing is not restricted if they are 15 years of age or older), the 15-year-old becomes the viewing restriction level. The rating data being larger than the parental level means that the degree of parental level (age restriction) indicated by the rating data exceeds the parental level (age) set at the parental level. For example, if your rating data is for adults,
That is, they have exceeded the parental control level of 15 years old.

In step S14, if the rating data is larger than the predetermined parental level, step S1
If the rating data is not higher than the predetermined parental level, muting is not performed in step S18, or if muted, the muting is released and the process returns to step S11. In step S15, it is determined whether the current time is in the non-viewing restriction time zone. If the current time is in the non-viewing restricted time zone,
In step S16, if the current time is not in the non-viewing restriction time zone, in step S17, the video and audio signals of the transmitted program are muted. This restricts viewing of the program, and returns to step S11.

In step S16, it is determined whether the current channel is a non-viewing restricted channel. If the current channel is a non-viewing restricted channel, step S
In step S18, the muting is not performed in step S18, or if muted, the muting is released, and the process returns to step S11. If the current channel is not a non-viewing restricted channel, step S17
Then, the video signal and the audio signal of the transmitted program are muted. This restricts viewing of the program, and returns to step S11. At the time of viewing restriction in step S17, display for requesting a password for releasing viewing restriction may be performed.

As described above, when the current time is not in the non-viewing restricted time zone and when the current channel is not in the non-viewing restricted channel, the viewing restriction is performed at the start of the program whose rating data is higher than the predetermined viewing restriction level. Thereafter, when the program ends and a program whose rating data is smaller than a predetermined viewing restriction level is started, the viewing restriction is released. in this way,
The viewing restriction device of the present invention restricts viewing of a program in consideration of not only the viewing restriction level but also the viewing time zone and channel. There is no unnecessarily restricted viewing on the channel. Therefore, the user can effectively apply the viewing restriction only to the time zone or channel where the viewing restriction is required, so that usability is improved.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a setting screen for setting a non-viewing restricted time zone and a non-viewing restricted channel. This setting screen is protected by a password or the like, and can be accessed only by a person who supervises a child such as a parent. In FIG. 3, setting 1 is a setting in which viewing restriction is not performed on all channels every day from 10 pm to 5 am, and is an example in which non-viewing restriction is set for a specific time zone. Setting 2 is every Saturday from 6:00 pm to 6:30 pm, channel 7 only,
This is a setting in which viewing restriction is not performed, and is an example in which non-viewing restriction is set for a specific program. Setting 3 is a setting in which viewing restriction is not performed only on the channel 28 every day in all time zones, and is an example in which non-viewing restriction is set for a specific channel.

In this embodiment, the configuration in which the viewing restriction device is built in the television receiver is shown, but it may be built in a video tape recorder or other devices. In addition, not only when the rating data is transmitted as a part of the XDS information but also when the rating data is transmitted by other means, the viewing restriction of the program can be similarly performed. Further, the rating data may be not only data indicating the age at which viewing of the program is permitted, but also data directly indicating the degree of violence or sexual expression, and the form of the rating data is not limited to this embodiment.

[0028]

As described above in detail, the parental control device of the present invention provides a parental control level for setting the degree of parental control, a non-parental restriction time zone for setting a channel in which parental control is not performed, and a non-parental control period for setting a channel. A memory for storing the parental control channel, and a parental control level set in the parental control level in a time zone other than the parental control time zone and a channel other than the parental control channel, and the parental control level indicated by the rating data is set in the parental control level. When the number exceeds the limit, a control unit for controlling the viewing restriction unit is provided so as to restrict the viewing of the program, so that the usability can be improved without unnecessarily restricting the viewing of the program.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display for explaining the operation of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Receiving part 2 Viewing restriction part 3 Decoder 4 Control part 5 Memory 6 On-screen signal generation part 7 Synthesis part 8 Display part 9 Speaker part

Claims (2)

[Claims] A receiving unit that receives and demodulates a television signal and outputs a video signal and an audio signal; a decoder that decodes rating data for restricting viewing of a program included in the video signal; In a viewing restriction device having a viewing restriction unit for restricting a program to be viewed according to data, a viewing restriction level for setting a degree of viewing restriction and a non-viewing restriction time period for setting a time period during which viewing is not restricted are stored. And restricting the viewing of the program in a time zone other than the non-viewing restriction time zone and when the degree of viewing restriction indicated by the rating data exceeds the degree of viewing restriction set at the viewing restriction level. A viewing restriction device, comprising: a control unit that controls the viewing restriction unit. 2. A receiving unit that receives and demodulates a television signal and outputs a video signal and an audio signal; a decoder that decodes rating data for restricting viewing of a program included in the video signal; In a viewing restriction device having a viewing restriction unit for restricting a program to be viewed according to data, a memory for storing a parental control level for setting a degree of parental control and a non-parental control channel for setting a channel without parental control And a channel other than the non-restricted channel, and
When the degree of parental control indicated by the rating data exceeds the parental control degree set at the parental control level, a control unit that controls the parental control unit so as to restrict the viewing of the program is provided. Parental control device.