JP2000209520A - Method for user interface for video display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for user interface for a video display device that is very simply operated for its control. SOLUTION: A control bar 802 as a tool bar to control a video display device is generated and displayed at an optional position on a screen 801 of the video display device and a control pointer operated by a user is used to select and execute a specific function of the control bar 802 displayed on the screen 801 in this user interface method for the video display device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a user interface method for a video display device, and more particularly, to a television receiver (hereinafter referred to as TV) or a video tape recorder (hereinafter referred to as VTR). In a video display device such as the above, a function directly selected by a user is performed using a control bar displayed on a screen, and T
Electronic program guide included in the V signal (Electron
ic Program Guide; hereinafter abbreviated as EPG) Decodes a signal, overlays it on a video signal and displays it on a TV screen, and uses the displayed EPG information screen to provide the user with various information on channels and programs. And a user interface method for a video display device capable of directly executing an arbitrary function on an EPG screen.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, video display devices such as TVs and VTRs use a remote control or a control key on an operation panel as a user interface.
That is, in a conventional video display device including a user interface, as shown in FIG. 13, audio and video inputs (A / VIN) are processed to output an audio signal and output a video signal to a screen. A / V processing unit 101, a remote control key input unit 102 for remote control of the device, an operation panel unit 103 for directly operating the device on the device main body, and an interface unit for receiving a key input signal of the remote control or the operation panel 104, a microcomputer 105 for recognizing a key signal input via the interface unit 104 and performing its function, and an appropriate on-screen display (OSD) corresponding to the key input signal. OSD processing unit 105a for outputting a screen, and OSD processing unit 105a
A synthesizing unit 106 for appropriately synthesizing a signal output from the A / V processing unit 101 and a signal output from the A / V processing unit 101, a video display unit 107 for displaying a video signal or an OSD signal output through the synthesizing unit 106, It was equipped.

[0003] Hereinafter, an operation and operation method of the conventional video display device configured as described above using a user interface will be described. As is well known, the A / V processing unit 101 processes input audio and video signals to display a video screen and output audio. At this time, in order for the user to control the function of the TV,
Alternatively, when a key on the operation panel 103 is selected, the contents of the key are input to the microcomputer 105 via the interface unit 104.

For example, assuming that the volume key is selected, the computer 105 controls the A / V processing unit 101 to increase or decrease the volume of the audio signal, and the OSD processing unit 105a controls the corresponding OSD screen 107.
b, and synthesizer 106 synthesizes it with the video signal, and displays the volume OSD on video screen 107 a of video display 107.
The screen 107b is displayed together. On the other hand, in the case of a VTR, a user directly operates a key on a remote control key input unit or an operation panel of the VTR main body to perform a corresponding function in the same manner as a TV.

[0005] Recently, since a broadcasting station has transmitted a TV signal with electronic program guide (EPG) information included therein, the user interface technology of a video display device has recently been developed based on the electronic signal guide displayed on a TV receiver. Using program guide (EPG) information, the user not only searches for a TV program, but also selects a channel. One example of such a technology is analog TV
In the case of (1), a technique is known in which a vertical blanking period (VBI) is transmitted with electronic program guide (EPG) data included, and the TV receiver decodes the electronic program guide (EPG) data and displays it on a screen. Have been. As another example, in the case of a digital TV,
The digital video stream is sent with electronic program guide (EPG) information included therein, and the electronic program guide (EPG) information is decoded using a decoder and superimposed on a video signal to be displayed on a screen.

That is, the conventional user interface of the electronic program guide (EPG) of the video display device displays the program information on the screen in the form of a grid or a list, and displays the program information from the electronic program guide (EPG) information screen. By selecting a channel item, channel selection control for the corresponding channel is directly performed.

[0007]

However, in such a conventional video display device, function control and selection operation of each device by a user interface are performed depending on hardware TV / VTR control. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange a plurality of keys on the remote controller and the operation panel, and therefore, they must be extremely complicated. Further, when one key is used as a multi-function key having a plurality of functions in order to overcome such a complicated key arrangement, it is necessary for the user to recognize and select and operate the key of the corresponding mode. Yes, very inconvenient.

In the case of a VTR, the remote controller for the TV is often used in connection with the TV. However, since the remote controller for the TV and the remote controller for the VTR are separate, the user must use both remote controllers alternately. Must also be used for TV and VTR
When a remote controller is used in an integrated manner, the key arrangement is complicated and one key often acts as a multi-key, so that selection and operation of a key for performing a specific function is extremely inconvenient.

Further, conventionally, in a user interface of an electronic program guide (EPG) of a video display device, since an electronic program guide (EPG) screen covers a part or all of a video screen, a program being broadcast is visible. There was also the disadvantage that the area was reduced. Furthermore, in particular, in the case of a digital TV, the existing analog T
Since it has a larger number of channels than V, the amount of information in the electronic program guide (EPG) is large, and the method of use is extremely complicated.

The present invention has been made in view of such conventional inconveniences and complications, and provides a user interface method for a video display device that is extremely simple to operate when controlling the video display device. The purpose is to do. Another object of the present invention is to secure a visible area of an electronic program guide (EPG) information screen so as not to occlude the video screen, and move a control pointer on the screen to add additional information and detailed information on a specific item. To provide a user interface method of a video display device capable of executing the corresponding function.

[0011]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve such an object, basically, a user directly operates using a control bar displayed on a screen. That is, in the user interface method of the video display device according to the present invention, a control bar is generated as a toolbar for controlling the video display device on the screen of the video display device and displayed at an arbitrary position on the screen,
Using the control bar displayed on the screen,
It is characterized in that a specific function is selected by a control pointer operated by a user to perform various operations.

In the user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention, the control bar has at least two or more modes, and switching to each mode is performed by a simple button operation on one screen. It is characterized by being performed.

[0013] In the user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention, the control bar includes:
It is always displayed on the screen, or is normally hidden from the screen, and when the user moves the control pointer, it is displayed at an appropriate position on the screen so that the corresponding function can be selected and operated. It is characterized by the following.

Further, in the user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention, an electronic program guide (EPG) is displayed on a screen in the form of a grid or a list, and a control such as a cursor such as a mouse or a trackball is performed. Pointer is electronic program guide (E
PG) The information is moved to an arbitrary item on the information screen, and information on the item is additionally displayed on the screen in a sub-window format.

Further, in the user interface method of the video display device according to the present invention, the EPG information is processed and displayed on the video screen so as to be translucent, the visible area is secured to the maximum, and the EPG information is displayed on the video screen. Is not shielded.

Further, in the user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention, when the control pointer moves over a program item, detailed information on the program, a menu list, and the entire subject are displayed in a window, and the control pointer is displayed. Navigate to a channel number or name to see more information or a menu list for that channel,
Control pointer is control bar or EPG
When the user moves on the button, detailed information on the function of the button is displayed to allow the user to recognize general or partial detailed information on the program and an executable function.

Further, in the user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention, the EPG information screen is configured to display only the channel number or the channel name to prevent the original video signal from being blocked. When the control pointer is moved over the displayed channel number or channel name, a program list of the corresponding channel or a predetermined number of adjacent channels is simultaneously displayed.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a video display device to which the user interface method according to the first embodiment of the present invention is applied. As in the related art, the A / V processing unit 201 receives an audio and video input (A / VIN), outputs an audio signal, outputs a video signal screen, displays the screen on the video display unit 206, and outputs audio. .
In this embodiment, a pointer operation means 202 is provided, and a control pointer (FIGS.
208a) is moved. As the pointer operation means 202, any means such as a mouse and a touch panel which are well-known in a computer or the like can be used. The interface unit 203 receives a signal from the pointer operation unit 202, recognizes the user's operation intention input from the interface unit 203, and sends the signal to the control bar generation unit 204 a, the control recognition unit 204 b, and the function control unit 204 c. They communicate their intentions. The control bar generation unit 204a generates a control bar 208 corresponding to the operation position of the user, and displays it on the screen 207. Control recognition unit 204
b recognizes the button selected by the user among the buttons of the control bar 208 displayed on the screen. The function control unit 204c controls the execution of the corresponding function recognized by the control recognition unit 204b. Overlay processing unit 20
5 appropriately processes the video signal output from the A / V processing unit 201 and the control bar screen signal generated by the control bar generation unit 204a to overlay the control bar on the screen. Video display unit 206
Displays the video signal and the control bar signal processed by the overlay processing unit 205.

Hereinafter, the first embodiment of the present invention configured as described above will be described.
A user interface method of the video display device according to the embodiment will be described. A TV signal is input via a tuner of a TV receiver, or a video tape, a CD, or the like.
-When audio and video data are input from a data storage device such as a ROM and a disc, the A / V processing unit 2
01 is converted into a predetermined signal that can be displayed by the video display unit 206 and output. At this time, when the user selects a desired function using the pointer operation means 202 such as a mouse, the video signal of the A / V processing unit 201 displayed on the screen 207 of the video display unit 206 is displayed on the overlay processing unit 205. The control bar 208 is displayed by performing overlay processing, and various functions can be selected and executed by the control bar 208.

Here, the control bar 208 is constituted by a predetermined screen (graphics) of a predetermined key (button) arrangement required for executing a corresponding function by the control bar generation unit 204a, and is overlaid by the overlay processing unit 205. It is displayed on the screen 207. That is, T
Each tool for controlling a video display device such as a V or VTR is displayed on the screen, and the display, that is, the control bar 208 may be located on any of the upper, lower, left, and right sides of the screen (for example, FIG. In 1, the control bar is located at the bottom of the screen).

The control bar 208 displayed on the screen 207 can be always displayed on the screen as shown in FIG. 2, but as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4,
It is normally hidden from the screen, and may be displayed on the screen 207 when the user moves the control pointer 208a to the edge of the screen, that is, the position where the control bar is displayed.

The control pointer 208a can be moved on the screen by pointer operation means 202 such as a mouse. That is, when a movement and button operation signal is input by the pointer operation unit 202, the signal is input to the control recognition unit 204b through the interface unit 203, and then the control pointer 208a is controlled to move to the corresponding position.

If the user operates an arbitrary button on the control bar 208 displayed on the screen 207,
The control recognition unit 204b recognizes the
4c performs the corresponding function and corresponds to the conventional hardware key input.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the control bar 208 is displayed at all times, it occupies a part of the screen 207. In this case, the video screen 207 excludes the area occupied by the control bar 208. Occupy the rest. Therefore, in the case of such a control bar constant display mode, the height of the screen 207 becomes slightly smaller by the height of the control bar.

On the other hand, in the case of FIG. 3, the control bar 208 is not displayed on the screen 207 until the user moves the control pointer 208a to the lower side of the screen 207, and as shown in FIG. 2
When 08a is moved to the lower side of the screen 207, the control bar 208 is displayed on the screen 207. In order to display the control bar 208 from the hidden state on the screen 207 in this way, the image is stored in a video memory (the function of the control bar generation unit 204a) and copied to a portion serving as a control bar display area. Can be done easily. At this time, when the height of the copy is gradually increased, the screen 207 is displayed.
The control bar 208 appears to rise naturally from the lower end of the control bar 208. Needless to say, these techniques can be realized by using similar techniques of a general personal computer.

Here, a TV control bar as a toolbar for controlling the TV will be described with reference to FIGS. Control bar 20 of the present embodiment
Reference numeral 8 denotes a "GUIDE" button for displaying an electronic program guide (EPG) on the screen, and a window for selecting a user option (for example, the constant display mode in FIG. 2 or the hidden mode in FIG. 4) is displayed on the screen. “OPT
"ION" button, "AUDIO" button to select audio and caption languages, and "CAPTI"
An "ON" button, a "CAPTURE" button for storing a still image after stopping the moving image, a "RECORD" button for recording a currently received TV signal, a "CH +/-" button for channel selection, "VOL +/-" buttons to adjust the volume, TV mode and V
It consists of a "TV / VTR" button for switching between the TR mode. It is not limited to these, and some of these functions may be omitted.

When the "AUDIO" button or the "CAPTION" button is selected from the TV control bar 208, a list 210 of selectable languages is displayed on the screen 207 as shown in FIG. When one language is selected from the list, the type of the selected language is displayed by characters or pictures. For example, when English is selected, the language type selected as "ENG" can be displayed in characters below the "AUDIO" button. In addition,
The language list information when the "AUDIO" button or the "CAPTION" button is selected is provided from a video signal provider (medium), and the information can be decoded and stored in a memory for use.

On the other hand, when switching to the VTR mode using the TV control bar 208, the operation can be easily performed simply by clicking the "TV / VTR" button. That is, when there are two or more modes, the conversion to another mode is performed on one screen. For example, after the user positions the control pointer 208a on the “TV / VTR” button using the pointer operation unit 202,
Click the VTR button to open the control recognition unit 2.
04b recognizes the control bar generation unit 204a
A VTR control bar 209 as shown in FIG.
Is generated and displayed on the screen 207.

In such a VTR control bar 209, a "PLAY" button for video playback, a "STOP" button for stopping playback, a "FF" button for fast playback, and a "Slider Cont" to move to a specific position
"roll" button, "+1" button for reproducing one frame at a time, "SLOW" button for slow reproduction, "CAPTUR" for stopping a moving image and storing the stopped image
"E" button, "AUDIO" button to select audio and caption languages, and "CAPTIO" button.
An "N" button, a "VOL +/-" button for adjusting the volume, and a "TV / VTR" button for switching between the TV mode and the VTR mode.

Such a VTR control bar 209
Also, in the same manner as in the TV control bar 208, a mode in which the control bar 209 is always displayed on the screen 207 (constant display mode) and a mode in which the control bar 209 is hidden when the control pointer 208 moves to the display position of the control bar (hidden) Mode), and the operation is performed in the same manner as in FIGS. However, there is a difference only in the configuration of the control bar generated by the control bar generation unit 204a and the execution function of the function control unit 204c when the corresponding button is clicked. Note that, similarly to the TV control bar 208, the control bar 209 of FIG. 5 can also present the language list and display the selected language in characters or pictures.

An electronic program guide (EP) is provided on the TV control bar 208 shown in FIGS.
G) A "GUIDE" button for displaying information on the screen may be shown, and the EPG may be displayed on the screen. A video display device that achieves this will be described below as a second embodiment of the present invention.

That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the video display device according to the second embodiment of the present invention is a video display device that receives a TV signal.
A V receiving unit 701, a tuner 702 for selecting a received TV signal, a TV signal decoder 703 for converting a selected TV signal or video data into a signal of a display format, and processing the video data. A moving image storage device 704 for supplying signal data 703;
An EPG decoder 705 for decoding an EPG signal from an output signal of the V signal decoder 703, an EPG database 706 for storing EPG data decoded by the EPG decoder 705, and a signal for displaying the decoded TV signal and EPG signal The display device 707 includes a display device 707 that performs processing, and a monitor 7011 that displays video signals and EPG information processed by the display device 707 on a screen.
8 as an overlay area 709 and a main screen area 70
Wrap 10

In order to select the information provided from the EPG information screen and execute the function, for example, control pointer operating means such as a mouse, a trackball, or a menu key of a remote controller is used. The control pointer at that time is a cursor displayed on the screen by the control pointer operating means described above. Note that such a control pointer operating means can be used in connection with the display device 707, and a method thereof can be easily realized by a known technique, and thus the description thereof is omitted. Also, a technique for overlay processing of an EPG information screen and a TV signal (video screen) can be realized by applying the existing OSD processing notation, and thus a specific description is omitted.

Hereinafter, a user interface method of the EPG of the video display device according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, a TV signal received by the TV receiver 701 and selected through the tuner 702 or video data read from a moving image storage device 704 such as a video tape, a CD-ROM, and a disk is a TV signal decoder. After input to 703, the display device 70
7 and output to the monitor 7011. Meanwhile, the EPG data included in the TV signal is decoded by the EPG decoder 705 and
It is stored in the G database 706.

Next, the video signal output from the TV signal decoder 703 and the EPG data output from the EPG database 706 are combined with the display device 707.
Is processed in an overlay area 709 and a main screen area 7010 as a video memory 708 of the
1 is overlaid and displayed.

One example of the EPG information screen displayed together with the video signal on the monitor screen in this manner is as follows.
As shown in FIG. 7, a control bar 802 is displayed below the video screen 801 and the control bar 802 is displayed.
A "GUIDE" button for displaying an EPG screen as a toolbar for controlling a TV, and an "OPTIO" for displaying a window for selecting a user option on the screen.
N "button," AUDIO "button to select audio and caption language, and" CAPTIO "button.
“N” button, “CAPTURE” button for storing the still image after stopping the moving image,
"RECORD" button for recording V signal, "CH +/-" button for channel selection, "VOL +/-" button for volume control, TV mode and V
It consists of a "TV / VTR" button for switching between TR mode. When the user selects one of the buttons using an input controller such as a mouse or a trackball, the function is executed.

For example, when the "GUIDE" button is selected, an EPG information screen 803 is displayed in a grid or list form. FIG. 7 shows a two-dimensional plane structure in which the horizontal axis is a time axis and the vertical axis is a list of channels. That is, the EPG information screen 803 includes a channel number 804, a channel name (broadcasting station name) 805, and a time 80
6, each function button 807a, 807b, 807c, 80
7d, a vertical axis scroll bar 808, a horizontal axis scroll bar 809, and the like. Also, such an EPG
The information screen 803 displays alpha blending (α-B
(Lending) notation or a notation in which a color key is alternately inserted into an object surface can be displayed translucently together with the TV screen 801.

Next, when the user selects a desired function, the EPG information screen 803 is immediately applied as it is displayed on the TV screen, and is fed back to the user to select a channel.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, even if the EPG information is displayed in a semi-transparent state, the user does not
May be shielded and cause inconvenience. Therefore, as another example of the EPG information screen displayed together with the video signal on the monitor screen, as shown in FIG.
When the "E" button is selected, an EPG formed of only a list of the channel number 902 and the channel name 903 on a part of the video screen, that is, the left edge in the case of FIG.
An information screen can also be output.

When the user clicks and selects a desired channel number or channel name using the control pointer 904 from the EPG screen shown in FIG. 8, the channel can be selected. When the control pointer 904 is moved to a desired channel number or channel name 905, a program list 906 corresponding to the channel is generated and displayed in the form of a window. In this way, channel selection is performed while the video screen 901 is secured as much as possible, and a list of programs broadcast by a specific channel can be seen at a glance. If the program list of the corresponding channel is long, a scroll bar can be additionally displayed on the program list 906.

As described above, the case of FIG. 8 is different from that of FIG. 7 in that the grid-type EPG is not uniformly displayed on the screen, but FIG. 7 and FIG. It is the same in that it has all the features. Fig. 8
When the EPG is displayed as shown in (1), the user can see only the program list of the channel he / she wants to watch, so that there is no feeling of confusion caused by the program information being overlaid on the moving image. This is advantageous in that a wider visible region can be secured.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, in the EPG information screen composed of only the channel number and the channel name, when the control pointer 904 moves to a specific channel, not only the corresponding channel but also the adjacent upper and lower channels The program list of the channel can be displayed at the same time. As shown, channel 14-
When the control pointer 904 is moved to 1 (MAX), not only the corresponding channel (MAX) but also the program list for the adjacent upper N channels and lower M channels can be displayed simultaneously (here, M and N are positive constants).

As shown in FIG. 9, the second embodiment of the present invention
In the user interface of the EPG of the video display device according to the embodiment, when the control pointer 1000 moves over an arbitrary program 1001, the color or brightness in the frame of the program 1001 is changed to focus on the program. If the title of the program is too long or the broadcast time is too short to display the title in the defined area, the sub-window 100 near the control pointer 1000 is displayed.
2 so that all the titles of the program can be displayed.
It can be further displayed below G.

Such a pop-up window (Po)
p-Up Window is a channel number (CH
NO. ) Or a channel name (CH NAME), and when the control pointer 1000 is moved over them, an addition to the button function such as “arrange by channel number” or “arrange by channel name” is performed. The description can be further displayed.

When the “GUIDE” button is selected, the window displayed is not only a two-dimensional grid type EPG for the time axis and the channel axis, but also a “Favo”.
rightses "," Search "and" Remind /
It can also be used as a window for editing a list such as "Record".

In order to use a single window to enable those operations, “What's” on the upper side of FIG. 9 is used.
On Now "," Favorites "," Sea "
rch "and" Remind / Record "may be used, so that pages having a plurality of functions can be used together in one window.

Here, "What's On Now"
The functions and purposes of the other pages except for will be described. First, "F
"avories" presents a channel and a program desired by the user according to the user's preference when the selection range of the channel and the program is too wide, and "Search"
“ch” provides a search function for a user to search for a desired program, and “Remind / Record”
Provides a user with a program attention function and a scheduled recording function.

"Favorites" is "Wh
It has exactly the same interface as the grid list displayed in "at's On Now", but the content can be edited by the user as "What's On Now".
And different.

Here, the specific program is called “Favori
An example of inclusion in the “tes” list will be described with reference to FIG. 10. “What's On Now” in FIG.
On the page, set the control pointer to "Animal".
After moving to Inscints 3 "1101, a pop-up menu 1102 is obtained by clicking a specific button of the control pointer control, for example, clicking the right button of the mouse, double-clicking the trackball, or clicking the menu button of the remote control. Is displayed near “Animal Instructs 3” 1101. Then, the pop-up menu 1 is displayed.
102 to "Add To Favorite Lis
In addition, a detailed description section 1103 for the program 1101 selected in such a process is presented together. In the above process, a bar representing a channel, such as a channel number or a channel name, remains unchanged. Since it is applied, it is also possible to select the entire channel in the list of “Favorites”.

The specific program is called “Favorites”
Can be included in the list of pages other than the grid list of the “Favorites” page. However, when deleting a specific program already included in the list of “Favorites”, be sure to delete “Favorite”.
It should be performed on the “items” page. In the same manner as the process including deleting the specific program from the “Favorites” list, the process is performed by a pop-up menu by operating a button of the control pointer operating unit.

On the other hand, as an example of including a specific program in the list of “Remind / Record”, FIG.
0, "Animal Instinct"
When the control pointer is positioned on “s3” 1101 and the button of the control pointer operation means is operated, the pop-up menu is displayed as “Animal Inst
ints 3 "1101. Then," Animal Instants 3 "110
After confirming whether or not 1 is a program after the current time, if it is a program after the current time, “Add To Rem” is displayed from a displayed pop-up menu.
ind / Record ".

On the other hand, when an attempt is made to delete a specific program from the “Remind / Record” list,
After displaying a pop-up menu from the program box in the same manner as in the case of “Favorites” described above, the “Delete From Remind” or “Delete From Record” menu may be selected.

FIG. 10 shows "What's On Now".
When a pop-up menu 1102 is displayed in FIG. 11, FIG. 11 shows a screen when “Search” 1201 is selected, and FIG. 12 shows a screen when “Remind / Record” is selected.
FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a screen when a user selects a button 1301. On the other hand, the screen configuration when “Favorites” is selected is “What's On Now” in FIG.
Is the same as

The search page (Se) shown in FIG.
arch page) is divided into a condition part and a search part.
The search condition items in the condition section include the start (From), end (To) date, time of day (When), channel (Channel), and area (Categor).
y), Rating (Rating), Keyword (Keywo)
rd) and the like, and when the search button 1202 is selected, a search result (Search Result) of the corresponding condition is presented. As for conditions such as channel, area, and grade, a plurality of conditions can be selected from each list at the same time. If no conditions are selected, it is considered that all conditions are selected.

[0055]

As described in detail above, in the user interface of the video display device according to the present invention, T
A control bar for controlling video display devices such as V and VTR is presented on the screen, and the user operates the control bar directly on the screen to select a corresponding function. There is no restriction on the number and arrangement of function keys as compared with the key input interface of the above, and in the specific mode, only the minimum button display for performing the corresponding mode is performed, so that the operation of the equipment is extremely easy. is there.

In the user interface of the video display device according to the present invention, the EPG information screen can be processed to be translucent or only the channel list can be displayed on the EPG information screen. When the control pointer moves on the EPG information screen, every time the control pointer is positioned on a specific item, detailed information, the entire title or the program There is an effect that the list of executable functions is displayed in detail in the form of a sub-window screen, so that convenience in use can be maximized.

Further, in the user interface of the video display device according to the present invention, when the control pointer moves on the EPG information screen, each time the control pointer is positioned on a specific item, only the additional explanation about the item is added. Instead, it presents a list of functions that can be executed with the item, and immediately executes the function selected from the list. For convenience in using the interface of the EPG user, the necessary information is limited to the item. This has the effect that it can be presented at a glance.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a video display device to which a first embodiment of a user interface method for a video display device according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a constant display mode in which a control bar is constantly displayed on a screen in the TV mode of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a half view showing a hidden mode in which a control bar is displayed on a screen by a control pointer from a state in which a control bar is hidden in the TV mode of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is another half view showing a hidden mode in which the control bar is hidden on the screen by the control pointer in the TV mode of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which a control bar is displayed on a screen in the VTR mode of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a video display device using a user interface of an electronic program guide (EPG) as a second embodiment of the user interface method of the video display device according to the present invention.

7 is a diagram showing an example in which the electronic program guide (EPG) interface of FIG. 6 is displayed on a screen.

8 is a diagram showing another example in which the electronic program guide (EPG) interface of FIG. 6 is displayed on a screen.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of information displayed in a subwindow when a control pointer is positioned on a program item in FIG. 6;

10 is an exemplary diagram showing a list of selectable menus displayed when the program item of FIG. 6 is selected.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an electronic program guide screen displayed when the function button in FIG. 6 is selected.

12 is an exemplary view showing another example of the electronic program guide screen displayed when the function button in FIG. 6 is selected.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing a video display device to which a conventional user interface method for a video display device is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 207, 801, 901: Video screen 208, 209, 802: Control bar 208a, 904: Control pointer 803: Information screen 902: Channel number 903: Channel name 906: Program list 1102: Pop-up menu 1103: Detailed explanation section

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Byung Lak Theo, Seoul, South Korea

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A method for generating a control bar as a toolbar for controlling a video display device, displaying the control bar at an arbitrary position on a screen of the video display device, and using a control pointer operated by a user. A step of selecting a specific function of a control bar displayed on a screen of the image display device, and a step of recognizing and executing the function selected by the control pointer, the image display device being sequentially performed. User interface method. 2. The control bar is always displayed on the screen, or is displayed on the screen immediately or gradually when the control pointer approaches the control bar display area. The user interface method of a video display device according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The control bar includes at least two control bars.
It has more than one mode and performs the functions corresponding to the different devices, the switching to each mode is performed on one screen, and the control bar displayed by the mode switching is the control bar in the previous mode. 2. The user interface method for a video display device according to claim 1, wherein only the type of control changes at the same position as the display position. 4. When an arbitrary function displayed on the control bar is selected, information attached to the function can be additionally selected and displayed, and at this time, the additional information is audio or cap information. When a language selection is requested to the control bar such as an application, the language is displayed as a selectable language type, and the selected language type is displayed on the control bar as characters or pictures. The user interface method of a video display device according to claim 1. 5. An electronic program guide (EPG) information is displayed overlaid on a video screen, and when a control pointer moves to a specific item on the electronic program guide (EPG) information screen, an item where the control pointer is located is displayed. A user interface method for an electronic program guide of a video display device, wherein related information is additionally displayed in a sub-window format. 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the sub-window automatically disappears when the control pointer goes out of the position of the corresponding item. 7. The item to which the control pointer moves is a program, and the information to be additionally displayed is detailed information on the program, or a program on an electronic program guide (EPG) information screen near the control pointer. The remaining function which cannot be displayed by itself or a menu list of functions which can be executed by the program, and when any one of the menu lists is selected, the function is executed.
The user interface method of the electronic program guide of the video display device described. 8. The item to which the control pointer moves is channel information such as a channel number or a channel name, and the additionally displayed information is a detailed description of the corresponding channel information or each function executed by the corresponding program. 6. The user interface method for an electronic program guide of an image display device according to claim 5, wherein when one of the menu lists is selected, the corresponding function is executed. 9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the item to which the control pointer moves is a function button on an electronic program guide (EPG) information screen, and the information to be additionally displayed is detailed information on a function of the function button. The user interface method of an electronic program guide of a video display device according to claim 5. 10. The electronic program guide (EPG) information is displayed in a form overlaid on a predetermined area on the video screen, and the electronic program guide (EPG) information is displayed in an area overlaid on the screen, Characters, lines, figures, and the like for separating information are overlaid on the screen, but in the area, a part that does not display information is displayed translucently to secure a visible area for the user. User interface method of the electronic program guide of the video display device. 11. An electronic program guide (EPG) information is displayed overlaid on a predetermined area on a video screen, wherein any one axis on a two-dimensional plane is a channel number or a channel name. 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein only the channel information is displayed and the remaining area is transparently allocated and assigned to a video screen area. 12. The electronic program guide (EPG)
When the control pointer moves to a channel information item on the information screen, a program list of the corresponding channel or a program list of a predetermined number of adjacent channels based on the item is simultaneously displayed as information related to the item. The user interface method of an electronic program guide of a video display device according to claim 10, wherein: