Electronic apparatus and method for controlling electronic apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11503369-B2
Application number	US-201916710377-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 11, 2019
Priority date	Dec 11, 2018
Publication date	Nov 15, 2022
Grant date	Nov 15, 2022

Abstract

An electronic apparatus maps each of a plurality of services to a channel number and provides an electronic program guide (EPG) that includes a broadcast channels and the plurality of services mapped to channel numbers of the electronic apparatus.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic apparatus comprising:
a user interface;
a memory configured to store at least one instruction; and
a processor configured to execute the at least one instruction to:
display at least one service name corresponding to at least one service, provided by the electronic apparatus, that is unassigned to a channel,
obtain a user command for inputting a service channel number to be allocated to a first service name corresponding to a first service, the user command for inputting the service channel number being a numeric input of the service channel number,
based on the user command for inputting the service channel number, display a plurality of service channel numbers including the service channel number,
based on a selection of a first service channel number among the plurality of service channel numbers, store, in the memory, the first service channel number in association with the first service name,
based on a user command for displaying an electronic program guide (EPG), display an EPG comprising at least one broadcast channel and the first service channel number,
based on selection of a future timing of a service channel displayed on the EPG, provide a task reservation screen for setting a reservation that controls operations to be performed by a service corresponding to the selected service channel, among the at least one service, at the future timing, and
based on setting the reservation through the task reservation screen, display an indicator on the selected service channel of the EPG at the future timing,

wherein a plurality of service channels corresponding to the plurality of service channel numbers includes:
a plurality of high-level service channels corresponding to a plurality of service categories, and
a plurality of low-level service channels corresponding to a plurality of services included in the plurality of service categories, and

wherein the processor is further configured to execute the at least one instruction to, based on the first service channel number being allocated to the first service name according to the selection, and a first service channel corresponding to the first service channel number being included in the plurality of high-level service channels, allocate channel numbers adjacent to the first service channel number to names of low-level services included in a service category corresponding to the first service name.

2. The electronic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the EPG further comprises a time axis and an information providing area, the information providing area comprising information of content broadcast on the at least one broadcast channel displayed at timings associated with the content relative to the time axis, and operation information of the first service displayed at timings associated with an operation relative to the time axis, and
wherein the operation information of the first service comprises at least one of past usage history of the electronic apparatus, power usage information of the electronic apparatus, information on an event detected through the electronic apparatus, and information on a service mode set in the past.

3. The electronic apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the timings comprise past timings of history information of the content broadcasted on the at least one broadcast channel and operations performed by the at least one service and future timings of the content to be broadcast on the at least one broadcast channel and the operations of the at least one service to be provided.

4. The electronic apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the at least one instruction to:
based on selection of a past timing among the past timings for the operations performed by the at least one service, provide a screen including detailed execution history information of the operations performed by the at least one service at the past timing.

5. The electronic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the at least one instruction to, based on the first service channel number being allocated to the first service name according to the selection, and the first service channel corresponding to the first service channel number being included in the low-level service channels, allocate, to a category name corresponding to a first service category which includes the first service, a high-level service channel number corresponding to a high-level service channel, and
wherein the high-level service channel number and the first service channel number are consecutive channel numbers of the electronic apparatus.

6. The electronic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the at least one instruction to:
based on selection of a high-level service channel number corresponding to one of the plurality of high-level service channels, provide a first user interface (UI) screen for integrating and providing a plurality of services included in a corresponding service category, and
based on selection of a low-level service channel number corresponding to one of the plurality of low-level service channels, provide a second user interface (UI) screen for providing a corresponding service.

7. The electronic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one service comprises at least one of a search service for Internet search and a control service for controlling an external device in communication with the electronic apparatus.

8. The electronic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to execute the at least one instruction to, based on receiving a user input to perform a channel search, provide a search result including information on the at least one service and the at least one broadcast channel as a result of the channel search.

9. A method of controlling an electronic apparatus, the method comprising:
displaying at least one service name corresponding to at least one service, provided by the electronic apparatus, that is unassigned to a channel;
obtaining a user command for inputting a service channel number to be allocated to a first service name corresponding to a first service, the user command for inputting the service channel number being a numeric input of the service channel number;
based on the user command for inputting the service channel number, displaying a plurality of service channel numbers including the service channel number;
based on a selection of a first service channel number among the plurality of service channel numbers, storing the first service channel number in association with the first service name;
based on a user command for displaying an electronic program guide (EPG), displaying an EPG comprising at least one broadcast channel and the first service channel number;
based on selection of a future timing of a service channel displayed on the EPG, providing a task reservation screen for setting a reservation that controls operations to be performed by a service corresponding to the selected service channel, among the at least one service, at the future timing; and
based on setting the reservation through the task reservation screen, displaying an indicator on the selected service channel of the EPG at the future timing,
wherein a plurality of service channels corresponding to the plurality of service channel numbers includes:
a plurality of high-level service channels corresponding to a plurality of service categories, and
a plurality of low-level service channels corresponding to a plurality of services included in the plurality of service categories, and

wherein the method further comprises, based on the first service channel number being allocated to the first service name accord

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lim Hun

Classifications

• H04N21/4131 Primary

  home appliance, e.g. lighting, air conditioning system, metering devices (home automation data switching networks exchanging configuration information on appliance services H04L12/2807) · CPC title

• H04N21/6405

  Multicasting {(data broadcast and multicast in packet switching networks H04L12/18)} · CPC title

• H04N21/4882

  for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders (arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895) · CPC title

• H04N21/4622 Primary

  Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet (web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859) · CPC title

• H04N21/462

  Content or additional data management e.g. creating a master electronic programme guide from data received from the Internet and a Head-end or controlling the complexity of a video stream by scaling the resolution or bit-rate based on the client capabilities · CPC title