U.S. patent application number 10/889170 was filed with the patent office on 2005-02-17 for ultrahard diamonds and method of making thereof.
This patent application is currently assigned to Carnegie Institution of Washington. Invention is credited to Hemley, Russell J., Mao, Ho-Kwang, Yan, Chih-shiue.
Application Number | 20050034650 10/889170 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34079231 |
Filed Date | 2005-02-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050034650 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hemley, Russell J. ; et
al. |
February 17, 2005 |
Ultrahard diamonds and method of making thereof
Abstract
A video recording/reproducing apparatus comprises a receiver
which receives a broadcast program, an acquiring unit which
acquires program information of the broadcast program, a recording
unit which records the broadcast program received by the receiver
together with the program information acquired by the acquiring
unit, a selector which selects a type of the program, and a
searching unit which searches a latest program of the type selected
by the selector based on the program information acquired by the
acquiring unit and the program information recorded by the
recording unit.
Inventors: |
Hemley, Russell J.; (Chevy
Chase, MD) ; Mao, Ho-Kwang; (Washington, DC) ;
Yan, Chih-shiue; (Washington, DC) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MORGAN LEWIS & BOCKIUS LLP
1111 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE NW
WASHINGTON
DC
20004
US
|
Assignee: |
Carnegie Institution of
Washington
|
Family ID: |
34079231 |
Appl. No.: |
10/889170 |
Filed: |
July 13, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60486435 |
Jul 14, 2003 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
117/68 ;
386/E5.001; G9B/27.012; G9B/27.013; G9B/27.019; G9B/27.021;
G9B/27.051 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C30B 33/00 20130101;
H04N 9/8042 20130101; H04N 5/775 20130101; C23C 16/277 20130101;
G11B 2220/65 20130101; H04N 5/781 20130101; C30B 25/105 20130101;
H04N 5/765 20130101; C30B 29/04 20130101; C23C 16/279 20130101;
C30B 33/02 20130101; H04N 9/8205 20130101; C23C 16/274 20130101;
C01B 32/26 20170801; H04N 5/76 20130101; C01B 32/25 20170801; G11B
2220/20 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
117/068 |
International
Class: |
C30B 007/00; C30B
021/02; C30B 028/06; C30B 023/00; C30B 025/00; C30B 028/12; C30B
028/14 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A video recording/reproducing apparatus comprising: a receiver
which receives a broadcast program; an acquiring unit which
acquires program information of the broadcast program; a recording
unit which records the broadcast program received by the receiver
together with the program information acquired by the acquiring
unit; a selector which selects a type of the program; and a
searching unit which searches a latest program of the type selected
by the selector based on the program information acquired by the
acquiring unit and the program information recorded by the
recording unit.
2. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the acquiring unit acquires the program information via
Internet.
3. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the acquiring unit receives the program information
together with the broadcast program.
4. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 1,
further comprising: an erasing unit which erases a recorded
broadcast program having a title which is the same as a title of
the searched program.
5. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 1,
further comprising: an erasing unit which erases a recorded
broadcast program having a title which is the same as a title of a
broadcast program to be recorded by the recording unit.
6. A video recording/reproducing apparatus comprising: a receiver
which receives a broadcast program; an acquiring unit which
acquires program information of the broadcast program; a recording
unit which records the broadcast program received by the receiver
together with the program information acquired by the acquiring
unit; and a display unit which displays the program information
recorded by the recording unit and the program information acquired
by the acquiring unit together with a recording state or a
reproducing state of the program.
7. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
wherein the acquiring unit acquires the program information via
Internet.
8. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
wherein the acquiring unit receives the program information
together with the broadcast program.
9. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
wherein the recording state includes recorded, recording, and
broadcast states.
10. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
wherein the reproducing state includes non-watched, watching, and
watched states.
11. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
which further comprises a selector which selects a type of the
program and wherein the display unit displays the program
information recorded by the recording unit and the program
information acquired by the acquiring unit concerning the selected
type in order from new information.
12. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim
11, further comprising: a program selector which selects one of the
program information displayed by the display unit; and a starting
unit which starts watching of the program selected by the program
selector.
13. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim
12, further comprising: an erasing unit which erases a recorded
broadcast program having a title which is the same as a title of
the selected program.
14. The video recording/reproducing apparatus according to claim 6,
further comprising: an erasing unit which erases a recorded
broadcast program having a title which is the same as a title of a
broadcast program to be recorded by the recording unit.
15. A video recording/reproducing method comprising: receiving a
broadcast program; acquiring program information of the broadcast
program; recording the received broadcast program together with the
acquired program information; displaying types of the program to
allow an user to select one of the types of the program; and
searching a latest program of the selected type based on the
recorded program information.
16. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 15,
further comprising: erasing a recorded broadcast program having a
title which is the same as a title of the searched program.
17. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 15,
further comprising: erasing a recorded broadcast program having a
title which is the same as a title of a broadcast program to be
recorded.
18. A video recording/reproducing method comprising: receiving a
broadcast program; acquiring program information of the broadcast
program; recording the received broadcast program together with the
acquired program information; and displaying the recorded program
information and the acquired program information together with a
recording state or a reproducing state of the program.
19. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 18,
which further comprises: selecting a type of the program; and
displaying the recorded program information and the acquired
program information of the selected category in order from new
information.
20. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 19,
further comprising: selecting one of the displayed program
information; and starting watching of the selected program.
21. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 20,
further. comprising: erasing a recorded broadcast program having a
title which is the same as a title of the searched program.
22. The video recording/reproducing method according to claim 18,
further comprising: erasing a recorded broadcast program having a
title which is the same as a title of a broadcast program to be
recorded.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is based upon and claims the benefit of
priority from prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-281160,
filed Jul. 28, 2003, the entire contents of which are incorporated
herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a video
recording/reproducing apparatus and method which records video
information such as television programs in large-capacity recording
media such as hard disk drives.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] There has heretofore been a method in which a program
recorded in a conventional video recording/reproducing apparatus is
reproduced using a recording start time included in recorded
program information (e.g., Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No.
2002-185904).
[0006] Here, an apparatus starting time is recorded at an apparatus
starting time, and the recorded program information is received
from a plurality of recording/reproducing apparatuses using
inter-apparatus communication means. The recording start time is
extracted from the received recorded program information, and a
recorded program start time is compared with the apparatus starting
time. When the recording start time comes before the apparatus
starting time, the recording start time, recorded program name, and
recorded time period are displayed in CRT. Moreover, a dial which
asks audiences whether or not to play back the recorded program is
also displayed. When the recording start time does not come before
the apparatus starting time, or when any recorded program
information does not exist, it is displayed that there is not any
recorded program.
[0007] However, in this document, a video tape is assumed as a
recording medium, and all the recorded program information is
simply displayed in order from the latest recording start time.
When the number of recorded programs increases, it has been
difficult to search a desired program.
[0008] Further in this document, when the audience does not want to
play back the recorded program at the time of starting the
apparatus, the recorded program information that has not been
watched is stored as a "non-watched recorded program list".
Accordingly, information which is possessed by a plurality of
recording/reproducing apparatuses and which indicates whether or
not recorded programs have been watched can be simplified and
managed. However, by the "non-watched recorded program list", it is
only seen whether or not the program has been watched, and it
cannot be seen that the program has been watched. Furthermore, only
the watching of the recorded information is assumed by the
recording/reproducing apparatus, and received video information
broadcasted in real time cannot be selected as a source of video to
be watched.
[0009] In this manner, the conventional video recording/reproducing
apparatus has a disadvantage that it is difficult to search a
desired recorded program. There is also a disadvantage that
real-time broadcasted video cannot be selected as a watching object
video.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] An object of the present invention is to provide a video
recording/reproducing apparatus capable of easily selecting a
program desired by an audience from a large number of recorded
programs or real-time broadcasted programs.
[0011] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a video
recording/reproducing apparatus comprises:
[0012] a receiver which receives a broadcast program;
[0013] an acquiring unit which acquires program information of the
broadcast program;
[0014] a recording unit which records the broadcast program
received by the receiver together with the program information
acquired by the acquiring unit;
[0015] a selector which selects a type of the program; and
[0016] a searching unit which searches a latest program of the type
selected by the selector based on the program information acquired
by the acquiring unit and the program information recorded by the
recording unit.
[0017] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
video recording/reproducing apparatus comprises:
[0018] a receiver which receives a broadcast program;
[0019] an acquiring unit which acquires program information of the
broadcast program;
[0020] a recording unit which records the broadcast is program
received by the receiver together with the program information
acquired by the acquiring unit; and
[0021] a display unit which displays the program information
recorded by the recording unit and the program information acquired
by the acquiring unit together with a recording state or a
reproducing state of the program.
[0022] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
video recording/reproducing method comprises:
[0023] receiving a broadcast program;
[0024] acquiring program information of the broadcast program;
[0025] recording the received broadcast program together with the
acquired program information;
[0026] displaying types of the program to allow an user to select
one of the types of the program; and
[0027] searching a latest program of the selected type based on the
recorded program information.
[0028] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
video recording/reproducing method comprises: receiving a broadcast
program;
[0029] acquiring program information of the broadcast program;
[0030] recording the received broadcast program together with the
acquired program information; and
[0031] displaying the recorded program information and the acquired
program information together with a recording state or a
reproducing state of the program.
[0032] Additional objects and advantages of the, present invention
will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part
will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice
of the present invention.
[0033] The objects and advantages of the present invention may be
realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and
combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
[0034] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and
constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of
the present invention and, together with the general description
given above and the detailed description of the embodiments given
below, serve to explain the principles of the present invention in
which:
[0035] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the whole system including a
video recording/reproducing apparatus according to an embodiment of
the present invention;
[0036] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the video recording/
reproducing apparatus according to the embodiment;
[0037] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an arrangement of buttons of a
remote controller according to the embodiment;
[0038] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a watching operation according
to the embodiment;
[0039] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an initial screen in which menu
is displayed according to the embodiment;
[0040] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a screen of menu display in a
category mode of the embodiment; and
[0041] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation in a repeated
recording or navigated recording mode of the embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0042] An embodiment of a video recording/reproducing apparatus
according to the present invention will now be described with
reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0043] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a constitution of the whole
system including a video recording/reproducing apparatus according
to a first embodiment of the present invention. The present system
mainly includes a video recording/reproducing apparatus 1, Internet
5, program providing site 6, and broadcast station 4. The single
program providing site 6 or broadcast station 4 is shown, but, in
actual, a plurality of sites or stations exist in many cases. The
video recording/ reproducing apparatus 1 receives television
broadcast from the broadcast station 4 to record desired program
video, also acquires electronic program guide (EPG) information
from the program providing site 6 via the Internet 5, and stores
the acquired electronic program guide information. Furthermore,
when the program video is recorded, the electronic program guide
information concerning the program is recorded as attribute
information together with the video.
[0044] The video recording/reproducing apparatus 1 supplies a
reproduced video signal, a received real-time broadcasted video
signal, electronic program guide information, or attribute
information to an external display device 2. A remote controller 3
for various operation inputs such as tuning and program selecting
is attached to the video recording/reproducing apparatus 1. It is
to be noted that television broadcast video may also be input into
the video recording/reproducing apparatus 1 via not only radio
waves but also wire cables. The program providing site 6 provides
electronic program guide information including various information
on television programs. The electronic program guide information
includes a category of program, broadcast date, broadcast station,
title, content (synopsis), representative image constitute of
representative scene indicating characteristics of program and the
like. Categories include drama, sports, music, cooking, weather
forecasting, animation, quiz, news, documentary, movies and the
like. It is to be noted that instead of distributing the electronic
program guide information from the specialty providing site 6 via
the Internet 5, the information may also be distributed together
with broadcasted video from the broadcast station 4 via broadcast
waves. The display device 2 separated from the video
recording/reproducing apparatus 1 may also be integrated.
[0045] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a constitution of the
video recording/reproducing apparatus 1. A CPU 42, ROM 44, RAM 46,
MPEG encoder 16, infrared receiving unit 20, network controller 26,
hard disk drive (HDD) controller 30, MPEG decoder 36, and RAM for
menu 38 are connected to a CPU bus 18. Radio waves from the
broadcast station 4 are input into a TV tuner 12 via an antenna,
and a broadcast signal of the broadcast station tuned by the TV
tuner 12 is supplied to the CPU bus 18 via an NTSC decoder 14 and
the MPEG encoder 16. Accordingly, television video information
compressed in an MPEG-2 system is transmitted on the CPU bus 18.
The television video information is recorded in a hard disk drive
32 which is accessible at random.
[0046] An infrared signal indicating an instruction input from the
remote controller 3 is received by the infrared receiving unit 20,
and transmitted on the CPU bus 18. A connector 24 connected to the
Internet 5 is connected to the network controller 26. The
electronic program guide information from the program information
providing site 6 is transmitted onto the CPU bus 18 via the
connector 24 and network controller 26. The electronic program
guide information is also recorded in the hard disk drive .32. It
is to be noted that when the television video information
compressed by the MPEG-2 system is recorded in the hard disk drive
32, program attribute information constituted of the electronic
program guide information of the corresponding program is recorded
together with video information. The program attribute information
also includes a reproduction state indicating that the recorded
program has not been watched yet, has been halfway watched, or has
been watched to the last. Television video mentioned herein also
includes sound. It is to be noted that the sound is compressed by
MPEG-1 layer 2.
[0047] The MPEG compressed video information read from the hard
disk drive 32 is supplied to the display device 2 via the MPEG
decoder 36 and a D/A converter 34. Moreover, a menu screen
constituted of the electronic program guide information and program
attribute information read from the hard disk drive 32 and stored
in the RAM for menu 38 is also supplied to the display device 2 via
the D/A converter 34.
[0048] The video recording/reproducing apparatus 1 has a timer
recording function, and the program can be selected from the
electronic program guide information displayed in the screen, and
reserved. In the reservation, instead of individually selecting the
program, repeated recording in which a regular program broadcasted
at the same time every week is recorded with one reservation, or a
navigation recording function of automatically searching a program
matching a keyword from the electronic program guide information to
record the program may also be performed.
[0049] FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an arrangement of keys of the
remote controller 3. The remote controller 3 includes a power
button 52, category button 54, favorite button 56, automatic erase
button 57, menu button 58, enter button 60, up/down/right/left
arrow buttons 62a, 62b, 62c, 62d, and stop button 64. The video
recording/reproducing apparatus 1 is constantly on so that reserved
recording is possible, and screen display of the display device 2
is turned on/off by the power button 52. The category button 54 or
the favorite button 56 sets a category mode or a favorite mode as a
menu mode. The category mode and favorite mode will be described
later in detail. By the automatic erase button, an automatic erase
mode (described later in detail) for erasing an old recorded
program having the same title at a recording time, play-back time
of the recorded program, or watching time of the broadcasted
program is designated. In the present embodiment, the menu screen
is displayed, when the power button 52 is pressed. However, by the
menu button 58, the menu screen is displayed at an optional time.
The enter button 60 is a button for defining the operation input,
and the arrow buttons 62 are buttons for selecting various
items.
[0050] An operation at a time when the menu button 58 is turned on
will be described with reference to FIG. 4. When an audience is to
watch a certain program, the audience presses the power button 52.
In step S72, an initial screen "category/favorite screen" shown in
FIG. 5 is displayed. In the screen, a large number of buttons
indicating category names, and an all category button which does
not designate any category are displayed. Moreover, a text
"category/favorite" indicating the menu mode (mode by category,
favorite mode) is displayed. In the text display, underlined
display indicates a presently set mode. Here, the favorite mode is
set. The mode is switched by the category button 54 or the favorite
button 56 of the remote controller 3. In the favorite mode, when
the category is only designated, the watching of latest video
(including not only recorded video but also real-time program being
broadcasted (non-recorded)) of the category can be automatically
started.
[0051] Then, in the favorite mode, designation of the category is
waited for in the display of FIG. 5. The category is selected with
the arrow button 62 of the remote controller 3. When the enter
button 60 is pressed in a selected state, the selection is
determined. Therefore, it is determined in step S76 whether or not
the category has been selected. When the category is selected, in
step S78 the latest program of the category is searched based on
the attribute information of the television video information
recorded in the HDD 32, and the electronic program guide
information. That is, the recorded program having the latest time,
or the title of the category being broadcasted, including the
present time, is searched. In step S80, the watching
(playback/tune) of the searched title is started.
[0052] Therefore, the audience can see the latest video of the
category by only one action for selecting the category in the
favorite mode. This favorite mode is significant for the latest
programs having a high real-time property, such as news and weather
forecast. The mode is effective for watching an old program which
is little worth watching. In the present embodiment, the automatic
erase mode can be selectively set in accordance with the
above-described principle. In the automatic erase mode, when the
program having the same title as that of the program to be watched
now is recorded in the HDD 32, the recorded program is
automatically erased. To save a storage capacity of the HDD 32, the
program having a low watching possibility is erased.
[0053] It is determined in step S82 whether or not the automatic
erase mode is set. When it is determined that the automatic erase
mode is set, the recorded program having the same title as that of
searched information is erased in step S84. When it is determined
in step S86 that the menu button 58 or the playback stop button 64
has been pressed, the process returns to step S72, and the
category/favorite screen (FIG. 5) is displayed.
[0054] On the other hand, in the category mode, when a list of
information on the recorded programs concerning the selected
category or the programs being broadcasted is displayed, and the
audience selects the desired program from the list, the watching of
the selected video can be started. Therefore, it is determined in
step S88 whether or not the category has been selected. When the
category is selected, in step S90 the video of the category is
searched based on the attribute information and electronic program
guide information of the recorded information in the HDD 32, and
the video is listed/displayed in order from the latest video. FIG.
6 shows an example of list display of the category mode. Here,
category "drama" is selected. A representative image is included in
the electronic program guide information, is an image indicating
characteristics of a certain program, and improves convenience in
selecting the program to the audience. A status indicates a
recording state or playback state of each program. The recording
state includes recorded, recording, and broadcast states. The
playback state includes a non-watched state, a watching state, and
a watched state to the last. The recorded state indicates the
program which has been recorded. The recording state indicates a
program being recorded, and the broadcast state indicates a program
being broadcasted. The non-watched state indicates a program which
has been recorded but has not been watched, the watching state
indicates that the recorded program has been watched halfway, and
the watched state indicates the recorded program which has been
watched to the last. The watching, non-watched, or watched state
can be determined in accordance with a value of a counter which is
disposed in a part of attribute information attached to the
recording information of the HDD 32 to indicate a watched time. It
is to be noted that instead of listing up all the programs of the
corresponding category, keywords such as the broadcast station,
status, and characters may be designated beforehand to search the
keyword, and further a limited list may also be displayed.
[0055] In the category mode, the selection of a title is waited for
in the display of FIG. 6. In the initial state of FIG. 6, the
latest program (top program) is highlight-displayed, and this
indicates that the program is tentatively selected. When the
up/down arrow keys 62a and 62c of the remote controller 3 are
pressed, the highlighted title is successively switched
upwards/downwards. When the enter button 60 is pressed, the
highlighted/displayed title at that time is finally selected. It is
to be noted that when the down arrow key 62c continues to be
pressed, the list is scrolled, and the past programs can also be
displayed. It is determined in step S92 whether or not the title
has been selected. When the title is selected, in step. S94 the
watching (reproducing/tuning) of the selected title is started.
[0056] Therefore, when the category is selected in the category
mode by the audience, only the contents corresponding to the
category are listed/displayed in order from a new content, and the
program to be watched can be searched in a short time.
[0057] In the same manner as in the favorite mode, when it is
determined in step S96 that the automatic erase mode has been set,
the recorded program having the same title as that of the selected
information is erased in step S98. When it is determined in step
S100 that the menu button 58 or the stop button 64 has been
pressed, the process returns to step S72, and the category/favorite
screen (FIG. 5) is displayed.
[0058] An operation at a recording time will be described with
reference to FIG. 7. The operation has an effect similar to that of
the automatic erase mode. Since the present embodiment has the
repeated recording function and navigated recording function as
described above, many programs are recorded in the HDD 32. In the
recorded programs, the latest program having the real-time property
is significant, and some of old programs are sometimes little worth
seeing. Therefore, at a reserved time of the repeated or navigated
recording, it is determined in step S104 whether or not the
automatic erase mode has been set before starting the recording.
When it is determined that the automatic erase mode has been set,
in step S106 the recorded program having the same title as that of
the program to be recorded is erased. For example, the mode is
significant for the latest programs having high real-time
properties, such as news and weather forecast. The mode is
effective for the repeated or navigated recording of the old
program little worth seeing.
[0059] As described above, according to the embodiment, in the
apparatus which records/reproduces the video using random
accessible recording mediums such as a hard disk drive, shortcut
buttons to the latest titles for each category (including not only
the recorded title but also a title being broadcasted) are
displayed as shown in FIG. 5. When any one of the buttons is
selected, the watching of the latest title corresponding to the
selected button is started. As shown in FIG. 6, search results for
each category are listed/ displayed in order from a new result, the
status is also displayed, and accordingly the desired program can
be easily selected on the screen. When a function of erasing the
past recorded program is set during the watching or the recording
of the latest program having the same title, the program having a
low possibility of watching can be automatically erased, and a
storage capacity of the HDD 32 can be effectively used.
[0060] While the description above refers to particular embodiments
of the present invention, it will be understood that many
modifications may be made without departing from the spirit
thereof. The accompanying claims are intended to cover such
modifications as would fall within the true scope and spirit of the
present invention. The presently disclosed embodiments are
therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not
restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the
appended claims, rather than the foregoing description, and all
changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of
the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. For
example, in the above description, the recording medium is a hard
disk drive, but the medium is not limited to this, and a removable
medium such as DVD may also be used. In the video recording/
reproducing apparatus 1, the CPU 42 is integrated with the HDD 32,
and the display device 2 is separated, but the apparatus may also
be integrally constituted as a notebook-size personal computer.
Alternatively, a wireless media station which is connected to the
notebook-size personal computer by radio and which expands a
function of the notebook-size personal computer may also be
constituted.
* * * * *