Television remote controller with programmable channel deselection
AssigneesSony Corporation, Sony Electronics Inc.
InventorChenchu Lakshmi Chilamakuri
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A channel selector for a television receiver has a device for deselecting specified channels for a predetermined period of time. When a channel has been deselected it will be skipped when a user “surfs” through the sequence of channels. After the predetermined period of time expires the deselected channel is returned to the sequence of available channels. Channels may be deselected for time periods corresponding to a standard timeslot, for example each half hour. Alternatively, channels may be deselected for periods corresponding to the actual length at the program determined from transmitted program scheduling data.
Claims6
A television receiver channel selection apparatus comprising:
- a television receiver for receiving a plurality of television channels and including a memory, the channels each being designated by a channel number and the channel numbers being arranged in a predefined sequence;
- a channel scanning device for sequentially scanning the predefined sequence of channels according to a user scan input by directing the television receiver to display a next successive or a previous channel of the predefined sequence;
- a channel deselecting device for deselecting a plurality of channels according to a user deselect input by designating a currently displayed channel as deselected and for temporarily removing the deselected channel from the predefined sequence of channels by storing the channel number corresponding to the deselected channel in the memory of the television receiver;
- timeslot determining means for determining a time when a current program being broadcast on the deselected channel ends without any user input;
- and
- reselecting means for removing the deselected designation of the temporarily deselected channel and for restoring the deselected channel to the predefined sequence of channels by removing the channel number corresponding to the deselected channel from the memory without any user input when the program currently being broadcast on the deselected channel ends;
- and
- reset means for restoring as one the plurality of deselected channels to the predefined sequence of channels by removing a plurality of channel numbers corresponding to the plurality of deselected channels from the memory according to a user reset input.
A method for selecting a channel of a television receiver comprising the steps of:
- determining a current channel from a predefined sequence of channels;
- receiving a user command to change the current channel to a next channel in the predefined sequence;
- deselecting a plurality of channels according to a user deselect input by designating the current channel as deselected and temporarily removing the deselected channel from the predefined sequence of channels;
- storing the deselected channel in a memory of the television receiver;
- calculating without any user input a time when a current program being broadcast on the deselected channel is to end;
- removing the deselected designation of the temporarily deselected channel and restoring the deselected channel to the predefined sequence of channels by removing the deselected channel from the memory without any user input when the program currently being broadcast on the deselected channel ends;
- and
- restoring as one the plurality of deselected channels to the predefined sequence of channels by removing a plurality of channel numbers corresponding to the plurality of deselected channels from the memory according to a user reset input.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.