Transmitting apparatus, transmitting method, receiving apparatus, receiving method, and transmitting and receiving system

Abstract

A transmitting and receiving system includes a transmitting apparatus that delivers a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast and an auxiliary stream generated from the main stream and a receiving apparatus that receives the main stream and the auxiliary stream from the transmitting apparatus. The transmitting apparatus includes a main-stream storing unit, a bit-rate-reducing converting unit, an auxiliary-stream storing unit, and a delivery control unit. The receiving apparatus includes a main-stream-reception control unit, an auxiliary-stream-reception control unit, a data processing unit, and an inter-stream-error storing unit. When tuning operation by a user is received, the main-stream-reception control unit selects, from data of an auxiliary stream of a tuned broadcast, data at such a time that the auxiliary stream is possible to be switched to a main stream without shift of scenes when the auxiliary stream is switched to the main stream later and supplies the data to the data processing unit.

1 .- 2 . (canceled) 
     
     
         3 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 main-stream storing means for storing a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast;   bit-rate-reducing converting means for converting the main stream into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   auxiliary-stream storing means for storing the auxiliary stream; and   delivery control means for performing control for delivering the main stream stored in the main-stream storing means and the auxiliary stream stored in the auxiliary-stream storing means to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         4 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 a main-stream storing unit storing a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast;   a bit-rate-reducing converting unit converting the main stream into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   an auxiliary-stream storing unit storing the auxiliary stream; and   a delivery control unit performing control for delivering the main stream stored in the main-stream storing unit and the auxiliary stream stored in the auxiliary-stream storing unit to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         5 . A transmitting method comprising the steps of:
 controlling storage of a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast;   converting the main stream into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   controlling storage of the auxiliary stream; and   performing control for delivering the main stream, storage of which is controlled in the main-stream-storage control step, and the auxiliary stream, storage of which is controlled in the auxiliary-stream-storage control step, to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         6 .- 7 . (canceled) 
     
     
         8 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 main-stream storing means for storing a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast; and   delivering means for delivering the main stream to an apparatus that reduces a bit rate of the main stream or a receiving apparatus that performs reproduction of the main stream.   
     
     
         9 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 a main-stream storing unit storing a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast; and   a delivering unit delivering the main stream to an apparatus that reduces a bit rate of the main stream or a receiving apparatus that performs reproduction of the main stream.   
     
     
         10 . A transmitting method comprising the steps of:
 controlling storage of a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast; and   delivering the main stream to an apparatus that reduces a bit rate of the main stream or a receiving apparatus that performs reproduction of the main stream.   
     
     
         11 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 bit-rate-reducing converting means for converting a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast supplied from another apparatus into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   auxiliary-stream storing means for storing the auxiliary stream; and   delivery control means for performing control for delivering the auxiliary stream stored in the auxiliary-stream storing means to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         12 . A transmitting apparatus comprising:
 a bit-rate-reducing converting unit converting a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast supplied from another apparatus into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   an auxiliary-stream storing unit storing the auxiliary stream; and   a delivery control unit performing control for delivering the auxiliary stream stored in the auxiliary-stream storing unit to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         13 . A transmitting apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the delivery control means delivers one stream obtained by collecting plural auxiliary streams as an auxiliary stream. 
     
     
         14 . A transmitting method comprising the steps of:
 converting a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast supplied from another apparatus into an auxiliary stream of a low bit rate;   controlling storage of the auxiliary stream; and   performing control for delivering the auxiliary stream, storage of which is controlled in processing in the auxiliary-stream-storage control step, to a network through a network interface.   
     
     
         15 . A receiving apparatus comprising:
 main-stream-reception control means for controlling reception of a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast and storage of the main stream in a buffer;   auxiliary-stream-reception control means for controlling reception of the auxiliary stream obtained by reducing a bit rate of the main stream and storage of the auxiliary stream in the buffer;   data processing means for performing decoding processing, decompression processing, and video processing for the main stream and the auxiliary stream; and   inter-stream-error storing means for judging an error between scenes of the main stream and the auxiliary stream on the basis of a value designating display time of each of screens and storing the error, wherein   when tuning operation by a user is received, the main-stream-reception control means selects, from data of an auxiliary stream of the tuned broadcast, reception and storage of which are controlled by the auxiliary-stream-reception control means, data at such a time that the auxiliary stream is possible to be switched to a main stream without shift of scenes when the auxiliary stream is switched to the main stream later, taking into account the error stored in the inter-stream-error storing means, and supplies the data to the data processing means.   
     
     
         16 . A receiving apparatus comprising:
 a main-stream-reception control unit controlling reception of a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast and storage of the main stream in a buffer;   an auxiliary-stream-reception control unit controlling reception of the auxiliary stream obtained by reducing a bit rate of the main stream and storage of the auxiliary stream in the buffer;   a data processing unit performing decoding processing, decompression processing, and video processing for the main stream and the auxiliary stream; and   an inter-stream-error storing unit judging an error between scenes of the main stream and the auxiliary stream on the basis of a value designating display time of each of screens and storing the error, wherein   when tuning operation by a user is received, the main-stream-reception control unit selects, from data of an auxiliary stream of the tuned broadcast, reception and storage of which are controlled by the auxiliary-stream-reception control unit, data at such a time that the auxiliary stream is possible to be switched to a main stream without shift of scenes when the auxiliary stream is switched to the main stream later, taking into account the error stored in the inter-stream-error storing unit, and supplies the data to the data processing unit.   
     
     
         17 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , further comprising scene detecting means for detecting a predetermined scene from an output of the data processing means, wherein
 when the predetermined scene is detected by the scene detecting means, the receiving apparatus applies a trigger to the auxiliary-stream-reception control means to start reception of the auxiliary stream from a transmitting apparatus that transmits an auxiliary stream and cause the auxiliary-stream-reception control means to start buffering.   
     
     
         18 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the receiving apparatus always receives and stores the auxiliary stream. 
     
     
         19 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the receiving apparatus receives auxiliary streams of all programs. 
     
     
         20 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the receiving apparatus receives an auxiliary stream of a program expected to be tuned in next from a program being viewed. 
     
     
         21 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the receiving apparatus receives auxiliary streams of plural broadcasts to be tuned in, simultaneously displays images based on the auxiliary streams on a screen, and performs a delivery request for the main stream with positioning of a frame or an arrow indicating a selection candidate on the image as a trigger. 
     
     
         22 . A receiving apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the data processing means absorbs shift of scenes in switching data of the auxiliary stream to data of the main stream by adjusting display time of a picture at a point before a first picture of the main stream at the time when the data of the auxiliary stream is switched to the data of the main stream. 
     
     
         23 . A receiving method comprising the steps of:
 controlling reception of a main stream for performing a streaming broadcast and storage of the main stream in a buffer;   controlling reception of the auxiliary stream obtained by reducing a bit rate of the main stream and storage of the auxiliary stream in the buffer;   performing decoding processing, decompression processing, and video processing for the main stream and the auxiliary stream; and   judging an error between scenes of the main stream and the auxiliary stream on the basis of a value designating display time of each of screens and storing the error, wherein   when tuning operation by a user is received, in the main-stream-reception control step, reception of a main stream of a tuned broadcast is performed from a network interface, and   from data of an auxiliary stream of the tuned broadcast, reception and storage of which are controlled in the auxiliary-stream-reception control step, data at such a time that the auxiliary stream is possible to be switched to a main stream without shift of scenes when the auxiliary stream is switched to the main stream later is selected taking into account the error stored in the inter-stream-error storing means and transferred to the data processing step.