JP2011182303A - Audio control apparatus and audio control system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an audio control apparatus and audio control system having convenience similar to that of a device that includes an HDMI input interface, by implementing device control equal to that of an HDMI device, without providing an input interface compliant to the HDMI standard. <P>SOLUTION: An audio control apparatus includes: a plurality of non-HDMI receiving sections (65-68) to which non-HDMI audio signals, which are not compliant to the HDMI standard, are inputted from a plurality of electronic devices (10-40); a control signal-receiving section 64 for receiving a device control signal compliant to the HDMI standard from an audio/video output apparatus 50; an audio input-switching section 71 for receiving non-HDMI audio signals outputted from the plurality of non-HDMI receiving sections (65-68); and a control section 62 for controlling the audio input-switching section 71. The control signal-receiving section 64 receives a first device control signal indicative of an electronic device outputting a non-HDMI audio signal, and the control section 62 controls the audio input-switching section 71 so as to output a non-HDMI audio signal indicated by the first device control signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention can reproduce audio / video (AV) content such as a movie using an electronic device such as a disc player that outputs signals in a signal format that does not comply with the HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) standard and the standard. The present invention relates to a sound control device and a sound control system for inputting only sound in a signal form that does not comply with the standard from the electronic device and outputting the sound to the speaker system side.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, it is widely used to connect an electronic device that plays back AV content and a television receiver (TV) that conforms to the HDMI standard with an HDMI cable, and to play back the AV content that is played back on the electronic device on this TV. Has been done.

  In the connection environment of devices conforming to the same standard, audio of AV contents played back on electronic devices is not played on the speaker built in the TV, and an audio input terminal that does not comply with the standard is provided. There is a demand to reproduce with better sound quality using a speaker system (hereinafter referred to as “speaker”) using an AV amplifier (audio video amplifier) provided. To this end, the sound is muted so that no sound is output from the TV built-in speaker, and between the audio output terminal of the electronic device that is not compliant with the same standard and the audio input terminal of the AV amplifier is made the same standard. A new connection with a non-compliant signal cable is required. In order to mute the sound, the volume volume operation and the work for connecting the signal cable are not convenient for the user.

  In order to obtain convenience in such a case, the electronic device has an input interface that can be connected via an output interface compliant with the HDMI standard of the electronic device, and AV content using a selected electronic device among a plurality of electronic devices. Has been proposed that automatically switches the audio output destination of the reproduced AV content from the speaker built in the TV to the speaker connected to the AV amplifier (see Patent Document 1).

  Thereby, when AV content is reproduced, it is not necessary to perform a connection operation between the electronic device and the audio control device, so that convenience can be obtained.

JP 2007-124552 A

  However, since the voice control device must include a plurality of input interfaces conforming to the HDMI standard for connecting to a plurality of electronic devices, this results in an increase in the manufacturing cost of the voice control device, in exchange for convenience. There was a problem that the user was forced to pay a financial burden.

  Therefore, the present invention has been created to solve the above-described problems, and is an audio control device that can realize device control equivalent to that of an HDMI device without having an input interface compliant with the HDMI standard. And it aims at providing a voice control system.

  In order to achieve the above object, an aspect of the present invention provides a voice control device and a voice control system having the following configurations (1), (2), (3) and (4).

(1)
A plurality of non-HDMI receiving units to which non-HDMI audio signals not conforming to the HDMI standard are input from a plurality of electronic devices;
A control signal receiving unit for receiving a device control signal compliant with the HDMI standard from the audio / video output device;
An audio input switching unit for receiving non-HDMI audio signals output from the plurality of non-HDMI receiving units;
A control unit for controlling the voice input switching unit,
The control signal receiving unit receives a first device control signal indicating an electronic device outputting the non-HDMI audio signal among the plurality of electronic devices,
The said control part controls the said audio | voice input switching part so that the non-HDMI audio | voice signal output from the said electronic device which the said 1st apparatus control signal shows may be output. The audio | voice control apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.

(2)
The audio control device further includes a control signal transmission unit that outputs a device control signal conforming to the HDMI standard to the audio video output device,
When the control unit controls the audio input switching unit to output the non-HDMI audio signal, the control unit controls the audio signal output from the audio / video output device to be muted. A second device control signal of
(1) The voice control device according to (1).

(3)
The audio control device further includes a reproduction unit that reproduces and outputs at least one of a video signal and an audio signal,
The audio input switching unit receives an audio signal from the reproduction unit,
The controller is
When the control signal receiving unit receives a third device control signal indicating that the power of the audio / video output device has been turned off, it is determined whether or not the playback unit is playing back only an audio signal;
(1) or (2), wherein if the reproduction unit determines that only the audio signal is reproduced, the audio input switching unit is controlled to output the audio signal output by the reproduction unit. Voice control device.

(4)
An electronic device including a non-HDMI audio output unit that outputs a non-HDMI audio signal that does not conform to the HDMI standard, and a control signal transmission unit that outputs a device control signal that conforms to the HDMI standard;
An audio and video output device comprising a control signal transmitting and receiving unit for transmitting and receiving the device control signal;
The non-HDMI receiving unit that receives the non-HDMI audio signal output from the electronic device, the control signal receiving unit that receives the device control signal transmitted from the control signal transmitting / receiving unit, and the non-HDMI receiving unit An audio control device including an audio input switching unit that receives a non-HDMI audio signal and a control unit that controls the audio input switching unit;
When the non-HDMI audio output unit outputs the non-HDMI audio signal, the control signal transmission unit outputs a device control signal indicating that the non-HDMI audio signal is output,
The control signal sending / receiving unit, when receiving the device control signal, sends it to the control signal receiving unit,
The said control part controls the said audio | voice input switching part based on the said apparatus control signal, The audio | voice control system characterized by the above-mentioned.

  The present invention provides a voice control device and a voice control system that have the same convenience as a device having an HDMI input interface by realizing device control equivalent to that of an HDMI device without providing an input interface compliant with the HDMI standard. Can be provided.

  That is, it is possible to provide an audio control device and an audio control system capable of automatically switching audio of AV content output from an electronic device to be output from a high-quality speaker instead of a speaker built in a television receiver compliant with the HDMI standard. Can do.

  In addition, the audio control device and the audio control system of the present invention can automatically execute a mute operation of the television receiver in conjunction with a reproduction operation of a plurality of electronic devices connected to the television receiver. It is.

The block diagram of the viewing-and-listening system provided with the audio | voice control apparatus of this invention. The figure which shows each apparatus which comprises a viewing-and-listening system. The figure which shows the flow of the signal between each apparatus which comprises a viewing-and-listening system. The flowchart for inputting a sound into the voice control device of the present invention. The sequence diagram regarding audio | voice input switching. The flowchart for changing an electronic device. The flowchart for turning off the power supply of the audio | voice control apparatus of this invention. The flowchart for turning off the power supply of the audio | voice control apparatus of this invention. The flowchart for setting an electronic device. The figure which shows the example of a setting menu displayed on TV screen.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order (1) to (8).

(1) Configuration of audio control device (2) Configuration of viewing system (3) Audio switching control method (4) Modification of audio switching control method (5) Power management method of audio control device (6) Power supply of audio control device Variations of Management Method (7) Electronic Device Registration Method (8) Other Embodiments This embodiment exemplifies an apparatus and a method for embodying the technical idea of the present invention. The material, shape, structure, arrangement, etc. of the article are not specified as follows. The same components are denoted by the same reference numerals.

(1) Configuration of Audio Control Device FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a viewing system provided with the audio control device of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the voice control device 60 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a first electronic device 10, a second electronic device 20, a third electronic device 30, an nth electronic device 40, The audio / video output device 50 and the audio output device 63 are connected to each other. For example, the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40 are devices that can reproduce a multimedia source including AV content, and include a recording / reproducing device, A set top box (STB), a game machine, or the like. The STB is a device that receives broadcast signals such as cable television broadcasts and converts them into signals that can be viewed on a general TV. For example, the audio / video output device 50 is a television receiver (TV), and the audio output device 63 is a speaker. The audio control device 60 is, for example, an AV amplifier that includes one or more audio input terminals that are not compliant with the HDMI standard and one or more HDMI audio output terminals that are compliant with the standard.

  The first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the n-th electronic device 40 are respectively a non-HDMI audio output unit 11, 21, 31, 41, and an HDMI transmission unit 12, 22, 32, 42. The non-HDMI audio output units 11, 21, 31, and 41 output audio signals of AV content such as movies recorded on an optical disc as audio signals that are not compliant with the HDMI standard (non-HDMI audio signals). This non-HDMI audio signal is, for example, an analog signal or a signal that conforms to the S / PDIF (Sony Philips Digital Interface) standard, which is a standard for digital transmission of audio signals by video and audio equipment. In the present embodiment, the video signal is not particularly described, but each of the electronic devices 10 to 40 may include a non-HDMI video transmission unit that outputs a non-HDMI video signal. The HDMI sending units 12, 22, 32, and 42 convert AV content video signals and audio signals into at least one of HDMI video signals and HDMI audio signals compliant with the HDMI standard, and HDMI-CEC (High Definition Multimedia Interface-Consumer). Electronics Control) A digital signal including control information (hereinafter referred to as “HDMI digital AV signal”) is output via an HDMI cable.

  The HDMI-CEC control information output from the HDMI sending units 12, 22, 32, and 42 of the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40, respectively, The signal is supplied to the HDMI interface unit 51 of the audio / video output device 50 via the HDMI cable. Also, the HDMI-CEC control information of the audio control device 60 is supplied from the HDMI sending unit 64 of the audio control device 60 to the HDMI interface unit 51 via the HDMI cable. Here, the HDMI transmission unit (12, 22, 32, 42, 64) in the present embodiment outputs an HDMI video signal and an HDMI audio signal, and transmits and receives HDMI-CEC control information.

  The audio / video output device 50 amplifies the audio signal supplied from the HDMI interface unit 51, the audio input switching unit 521 that switches the audio signal supplied from the HDMI interface unit 51, and the audio signal supplied from the audio input switching unit 521 and outputs the audio signal. And an output unit 52. The audio output unit 52 is, for example, a speaker. Furthermore, a video input switching unit 531 that switches the video signal supplied from the HDMI interface unit 51 and a video output unit 53 that outputs the video signal supplied from the video input switching unit 531 are provided. The control unit 54 includes an HDMI-CEC control unit 541.

The HDMI interface unit 51 outputs HDMI output from the HDMI transmission units 12, 22, 32, and 42 of the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40, respectively. The digital AV signal and the HDMI digital AV signal output from the HDMI transmission unit 64 of the audio control device 60 are input. The HDMI interface unit 51 includes a first HDMI receiving unit 55, a second HDMI receiving unit 56, a third HDMI receiving unit 57, an nth HDMI receiving unit 58, and an (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59. Here, the HDMI receiving unit (55 to 59) in this embodiment receives an HDMI video signal and an HDMI audio signal, and transmits and receives HDMI-CEC control information.

   The audio control device 60 is output from the non-HDMI audio output units 11, 21, 31, 41 of the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40, respectively. The non-HDMI interface unit 61 to which the audio signal is input, the audio input switching unit 71 for switching the audio signal supplied from the non-HDMI interface unit 61, the control unit 62, the HDMI sending unit 64, and the AV content are reproduced. And a storage unit 73. The non-HDMI interface unit 61 includes a first non-HDMI receiving unit 65, a second non-HDMI receiving unit 66, a third non-HDMI receiving unit 67, and an n-th non-HDMI receiving unit 68. Each of the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 to the n-th non-HDMI receiving unit 68 can select a plurality of input formats such as an input terminal conforming to the S / PDIF standard and an analog audio signal input terminal. As shown in FIG. 1, the control unit 62 includes a signal detection unit 70 and a voice switching determination unit 72.

  The sound output device 63 connected to the sound control device 60 outputs the sound signal output from the sound control device 60 as sound.

  The non-HDMI interface unit 61 is an input interface that is not compliant with the HDMI standard (hereinafter referred to as “non-HDMI input interface”). The non-HDMI interface unit 61 receives a digital audio signal compliant with the S / PDIF standard, an analog audio signal, and the like.

  The HDMI transmission unit 64 is an output interface (hereinafter referred to as “HDMI output interface”) for outputting a digital audio signal and a digital video signal compliant with the HDMI standard. The HDMI sending unit 64 includes an HDMI interface unit 51 which is an input interface compliant with the HDMI standard (hereinafter referred to as “HDMI input interface”), and a device control signal and control for realizing a mutual device control function via an HDMI cable. Transmits and receives HDMI-CEC control information, which is a protocol.

  Thus, the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, the nth electronic device 40, the audio / video output device 50, and the audio control device 60 are connected to each other by the HDMI cable. Then, each device transmits / receives control information regarding various device operations such as “power on”, “power off”, “playback”, “volume increase / decrease” as HDMI-CEC control information. The control of each device is executed according to the HDMI-CEC control information.

  Here, “power off” refers to a state in which the main power is on and standby power is supplied. Therefore, the “power off” audio / video output device 50 is the HDMI digital output from the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40 when the power is off. Even if the AV signal is received, the video signal and the audio signal included in the HDMI digital AV signal cannot be reproduced. However, since the audio / video output device 50 can receive the HDMI-CEC control information included in the HDMI digital AV signal, when the HDMI-CEC control information includes a power-on control command, The audio / video output device 50 can be turned on in conjunction with the AV content playback operation by the first electronic device 10 or the like.

The audio / video output device 50 can also turn on or off the power of other electronic devices by a control command included in the HDMI-CEC control information. The first electronic device 10 and the second electronic device It is also possible to turn on the power of each of the other electronic devices in conjunction with the operation of one of the electronic devices 20, 20, the n-th electronic device 40, for example, the execution of the playback function, etc. is there.

   HDMI digital AV signals are output from the HDMI sending units 12, 22, 32, and 42 of the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40, and the HDMI digital AV signal is output. The HDMI-CEC control information in the digital AV signal is supplied to the HDMI interface unit 51 of the audio / video output device 50. Further, the HDMI-CEC control information supplied to the HDMI interface unit 51 is supplied to the HDMI-CEC control unit 541 of the control unit 54, and the HDMI-CEC control unit 541 sends the received HDMI-CEC control information to the HDMI interface unit 51. Output. The HDMI-CEC control unit 541 also outputs the HDMI-CEC control information of the audio / video output device 50.

Each HDMI receiving unit 55 to 59 of the HDMI interface unit 51 supplies the received HDMI-CEC control information to each connected device. As described above, the HDMI-CEC control signal is transmitted and received bidirectionally between the devices. HDMI-CEC control information is also supplied from the (n + 1) -th HDMI receiving unit 59 of the HDMI interface unit 51 to the HDMI sending unit 64 of the audio control device 60.

    The audio switching determination unit 72 detects which one of the first electronic device 10 to the n-th electronic device 40 has performed the reproduction operation based on the HDMI-CEC control information acquired by the HDMI transmission unit 64, According to the “set rule”, the interface to which the electronic device that has performed the playback operation is connected is designated as the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65, the second non-HDMI receiving unit 66, the third non-HDMI receiving unit 67, the nth The audio input switching unit 71 is switched to select from the non-HDMI receiving unit 68. Thus, the audio signal received by the audio input switching unit 71 by the switching control by the audio switching determining unit 72 is output to the audio output device 63.

  The control unit 62 controls to mute the sound output from the sound output unit 52 while outputting the sound signal from the sound control device 60.

  Here, the “HDMI-CEC control information” includes audio output control information of “specific electronic device”, interface type information possessed by the specific electronic device, and the first electronic device 10 and the second electronic device 20. , Voice output control commands for the third electronic device 30 and the n-th electronic device 40, and the like.

  The “specific electronic device” refers to an electronic device that is set to output audio using the audio output device 63. In the present embodiment, the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40 are set.

Next, the “preset rule” is a voice that prompts the voice switching determination unit 72 of the control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 to transmit a voice signal from a specific electronic device and realize an arbitrary function. Signal transmission standards and transmission paths are defined. By associating with which transmission standard interface the audio signal from a specific electronic device is connected to the audio control device 60, and by associating the device ID on the HDMI-CEC control of the specific electronic device, HDMI- The electronic device that issued the control signal from the CEC defines which audio signal of the audio control device 60 is connected to which interface of which transmission standard should be switched based on the logical address.

  For example, assume that the first electronic device 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a Blu-ray Disc player (BDP) 400 capable of high-quality multi-channel audio reproduction as shown in FIG. 3, and the non-HDMI audio output unit 11 is multi-channel. Assume that the interface is capable of outputting an analog audio signal. In this case, the transmission standard of the audio signal output from the first electronic device 10 to the audio control device 60 (AV amplifier 200) is defined as multi-channel analog.

 When the first electronic device 10 starts playback of content, the HDMI sending unit 12 sends an HDMI video signal, an HDMI audio signal, and HDMI-CEC control information compliant with the HDMI standard to the first HDMI receiving unit 55. Is output. Further, a multi-channel analog audio signal is output from the non-HDMI audio output unit 11 to the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65. The HDMI-CEC control information input from the first HDMI receiving unit 55 is supplied to the HDMI-CEC control unit 541, and further supplied from the HDMI-CEC control unit 541 to other electronic devices via the HDMI interface unit 51. The

 The HDMI sending unit 64 of the audio control device 60 receives the HDMI-CEC control information from the (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59, and the control unit 62 receives information indicating that the first electronic device 10 is in the active state and the first electronic device. 10 device IDs are received. Based on the device ID, the control unit 62 determines that the audio signal input to the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 is output from the first electronic device 10, and the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65. Is stored in the storage unit 73 to correspond to the device ID of the first electronic device 10.

 The transmission path is defined as a path from the non-HDMI output unit 11 of the first electronic device 10 to the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 of the audio control device 60. At this time, the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 is an interface capable of multi-channel analog input. Information regarding a specific electronic device and information regarding a preset rule are stored in advance in the storage unit 73 of the voice control device 60.

   The control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 shown in FIG. 1 controls various operations of the entire device. The signal detection unit 70 and the voice switching determination unit 72 constituting the control unit 62 may be configured by dedicated hardware, respectively, and are substantially implemented by software using a CPU of a normal computer system that operates on an open platform. It may have a function equivalent to.

  Here, “open platform” refers to interoperability between devices, reusability of software such as OS, service interoperability, and uniformity of user interface in connection of information processing devices and communication networks. This refers to the hardware and software infrastructure where the design specifications of the parts necessary for assurance are made public. When a system that operates on the “open platform”, that is, an open platform system is constructed, it is possible to use existing information resources between connected devices.

  The control unit 62 activates the voice control device 60 from a ROM (not shown) in the control unit 62 based on an input signal from a user interface unit such as a selection button (not shown) or a volume knob of the voice control device 60. The boot program is read out and executed, and the operating system stored in the storage unit 73 is read out.

  Further, the control unit 62 controls reproduction of each electronic device using a user interface unit and an HDMI-CEC signal line that constitutes a part of the HDMI cable and bidirectionally transmits the HDMI-CEC control information. The control program and data stored in the ROM and the storage unit 73 are read out and loaded into a RAM (not shown). In addition, the control unit 62 executes a series of processes to be described later, such as data calculation or processing, based on the control command of the control program read from the RAM. The storage unit 73 is a semiconductor memory, a magnetic disk, or the like, and stores a control program executed by the control unit 62 and data.

(2) Configuration of Viewing System FIG. 2 is a diagram showing each device constituting the viewing system, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a signal flow between each device constituting the viewing system.

  As shown in FIG. 2, examples of the viewing system provided with the audio control device 60 include a television receiver (TV) 100, an AV amplifier 200, a speaker system (speaker) 270, a set top box (STB) 300, and a Blu-ray disc player. (BDP) 400 and game machine (GAME) 500 are provided. The audio / video output device 50 shown in FIG. 1 is a television receiver 100, the audio control device 60 is an AV amplifier 200, the audio output device 63 is a speaker system 270, the second electronic device 20 is a set top box 300, and the first electronic device. 10 corresponds to the Blu-ray disc player 400, and the third electronic device 30 corresponds to the game device 500, respectively.

  The set-top box 300 and the game device 500 are connected to the AV amplifier 200 via S / PDIF cables 360 and 560, respectively, as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. Output as audio. The AV amplifier 200 is connected to a speaker 270. In addition, the Blu-ray disc player 400 is connected to the AV amplifier 200 by a 5.1ch analog connection cable 460 as indicated by a broken line in FIG. 2, and outputs sound from the speaker system 270 by analog connection. Furthermore, the set-top box 300, the Blu-ray disc player 400, and the game device 500 are connected to the television receiver 100 via HDMI cables 350, 450, and 550, respectively, and output video and audio through connections that conform to the HDMI standard. The AV amplifier 200 is connected to the TV 100 via an HDMI cable 250, and the AV amplifier 200, the set top box 300, the Blu-ray disc player 400, and the game device 500 are HDMI-CEC control information that is a control signal that conforms to the television receiver 100 and the HDMI standard. Send and receive.

  Here, the “sink device” refers to a device on the video and audio receiving side such as the TV 100. The “source device” refers to a device on the video and audio transmission side such as STB300, BDP400, GAME500, or the like. Components of the system compliant with the HDMI standard are classified into source devices, sink devices, cables / connectors, and repeaters. In the HDMI standard, a source device and a sink device are digitally connected. In order to transmit / receive HDMI-CEC control information between the sink device and the source device, it is necessary to assign an address to each device. The source device acquires a physical address from the sink device. In the EDID (Extended Display Identification Data) of the sink device, a physical address to be used by the device is described. The source device reads the EDID of the sink device and acquires the physical address. Of course, if the HDMI cable is not connected, the source device cannot read the EDID of the sink device.

  In the configuration of the device shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, video can be output from the TV 100, and audio can be output from the speaker 270 that can be expected to be reproduced with higher sound quality than the built-in speaker of the TV 100 via the AV amplifier 200. is there.

  Next, in FIG. 3, the BDP 400 corresponds to the first electronic device 10 in FIG. 1, and the STB 300 corresponds to the second electronic device 20 in FIG. The TV 100 corresponds to the audio / video output device 50 of FIG. 1, the AV amplifier 200 corresponds to the audio control device 60 of FIG. 1, and the speaker 270 corresponds to the audio output device 63 of FIG. .

  As shown in FIG. 3, the TV 100 is connected to the BDP 400, the STB 300, and the AV amplifier 200 via HDMI cables 450, 350, and 250, respectively. The HDMI cables 450, 350, 250 include TMDS signal lines 451, 351, 251 and HDMI-CEC signal lines 452, 352, 252. The AV amplifier 200 is connected to the BDP 400 via the 5.1ch signal line 460 and also connected to the STB 300 via the S / PDIF signal line 360.

  Here, when a Blu-ray disc (BD) in which AV content is recorded by the BDP 400 is played, the digital AV signal output from the video playback unit 401 and the audio playback unit 402 of the BDP 400 conforms to the HDMI standard by the HDMI transmission circuit 404. The digital AV signal is converted and transmitted to the HDMI receiving circuit A 101 of the TV 100 through the TMDS signal line 451 in the HDMI cable 450. In addition, a message indicating that the BD is being played back by the BDP 400, a response message to the message, and the like are transmitted as HDMI-CEC control information via the HDMI-CEC signal line 452 in the HDMI cable 450 to the CPU 403 of the BDP 400 and the CPU 104 of the TV 100. Sent to and received from. Further, the digital audio signal output from the audio reproduction unit 402 is D / A converted by the D / A converter 405, and the 5.1ch signal line 460 is converted into a 5.1ch analog audio signal corresponding to the 5.1ch audio system. Through the analog input switching circuit (analog input) 205 of the AV amplifier 200 and the signal detection unit 211. The analog input switching circuit 205 supplies an analog audio signal switched from a plurality of input analog audio signals to the audio input switching unit 208.

  The STB 300 receives a digital broadcast. The broadcast signal demodulated by the video demodulating unit 301 and the audio demodulating unit 302 is converted into a digital AV signal compliant with the HDMI standard by the HDMI transmission circuit 304, and the HDMI reception of the TV 100 is performed through the TMDS signal line 351 in the HDMI cable 350. It is transmitted to the circuit B102. Further, the CPU 303 of the STB 300 transmits a message indicating that the STB 300 is receiving a digital broadcast, a response message to the message, and the like as HDMI-CEC control information through the HDMI-CEC signal line 352 in the HDMI cable 350 as the TV 100. It is transmitted to and received from the CPU 104 in the inside. Further, the digital audio signal demodulated by the audio demodulator 302 is converted and output to a digital audio signal compliant with the S / PDIF standard by the S / PDIF output circuit 305, and is output from the AV amplifier 200 through the S / PDIF signal line 360. The data is transmitted to the S / PDIF receiving circuit A202. The digital audio signal conforming to the S / PDIF standard received by the S / PDIF receiving circuit A 202 is decoded into an analog audio signal by the audio decoding circuit 204 and supplied to the audio input switching unit 208.

  The AV amplifier 200 includes a built-in DVD playback unit 220. The video signal obtained by the built-in DVD playback unit 220 playing back the DVD disc on which the AV content is recorded is supplied to the video input switching unit 210, and the audio signal is converted into an analog audio signal and the audio input switching unit. 208 is supplied.

  The audio input switching unit 208 is supplied with the 5.1ch analog audio signal supplied from the BDP 400 through the 5.1ch signal line 460 and the analog audio signal supplied from the video / audio device from the analog input switching circuit 205. . Further, the audio input switching unit 208 receives an analog audio signal input from the STB 300 through the S / PDIF signal line 360 to the S / PDIF receiving circuit A 202 and decoded from the digital audio signal by the audio decoding circuit 204, and a video / audio device. Are supplied to the S / PDIF receiving circuit B203 and the analog audio signal obtained by decoding the digital audio signal compliant with the S / PDIF standard by the audio decoding circuit 204.

  The audio input switching unit 208 uses the switching control signal supplied from the control unit 206 to switch and select one analog audio signal and digital audio signal from the plurality of analog audio signals and digital audio signals, and the HDMI transmission circuit 201 or Output to the audio circuit / amplifier 209. The analog audio signal output from the audio input switching unit 208 is supplied to the HDMI transmission circuit 201, where it is converted into a digital audio signal compliant with the HDMI standard, and from the HDMI output terminal of the AV amplifier 200 to the HDMI cable 250. The signal is transmitted to the HDMI receiving circuit C103 of the TV 100 through the TMDS signal line 251. The HDMI receiving circuit C103 receives an HDMI standard transmission signal, decodes it to a baseband digital audio signal, and supplies it to the audio circuit. The audio circuit 106 D / A-decodes the baseband digital audio signal to obtain an analog audio signal, and outputs the amplified analog audio signal to the TV built-in speaker 107.

  On the other hand, the analog audio signal output from the audio input switching unit 208 is supplied to the audio circuit / amplifier 209, amplified, and then output from the speaker system 270. The voice input switching unit 208 corresponds to the voice input switching unit 71 shown in FIG.

  The control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 sends a message indicating that the built-in DVD reproduction unit 220 is reproducing a DVD disc, a response message to the message, and the like through the HDMI-CEC signal line 252 in the HDMI cable 250. The control information is transmitted to the control unit 104 in the TV 100. The control unit 104 transmits information such as operation states of the STB 300 and the BDP 400 to the AV amplifier 200 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 252.

As a result, the AV amplifier 200 does not directly connect to the BDP 400 and STB 300 using the HDMI cable, but the operation states of the BDP 400 and STB 300 that are HDMI-connected to the TV 100 with the HDMI cables 350 and 450 are It can be detected through the HDMI-CEC signal line 252 connected to the TV 100.

    A digital video signal selected from the digital AV signals input to the HDMI receiving circuits A101 to C103 of the TV 100 is displayed on the display unit 108 after being processed by the video circuit 105. A digital audio signal corresponding to the selected digital video signal is processed by the audio circuit 106 and then output from the TV built-in speaker 107.

  The HDMI receiving circuit A101, the HDMI receiving circuit B102, and the HDMI receiving circuit C103 correspond to the first HDMI receiving unit 55, the second HDMI receiving unit 56, and the third HDMI receiving unit 57 shown in FIG. The S / PDIF receiving circuit A202 corresponds to the second non-HDMI receiving unit 66 shown in FIG. 1, and similarly, the terminal 461 is the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65, and the S / PDIF output circuit 305 is the non-HDMI output unit. 21 and the terminal 406 correspond to the non-HDMI output unit 11.

  In FIG. 2, the TV 100 detects the playback start state of each of the electronic devices BDP 400, STB 300, and GAME 500, and the signal communicated via the HDMI cable based on the HDMI-CEC control information is the electronic device ( The communication is automatically switched between the active electronic device) and the TV 100. Also, the AV amplifier 200 acquires the playback start state of an electronic device such as the BDP 400, the STB 300, and the GAME 500 that are not connected via HDMI as HDMI-CEC control information from the TV 100 via the HDMI cable 250, and the electronic device that has started playback. Automatically switch to non-HDMI audio input from the device and output. In the following description, an electronic device that is executing reproduction is referred to as an “active electronic device”.

(3) Voice switching control method FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 of the present invention.

  A process in which the audio control device 60 switches the audio output of the audio / video output device 50 to the mute state in accordance with the input of the audio signal will be described in order with reference to FIG.

  In the following description, the viewing system of the present embodiment is configured to include two electronic devices, in which the first electronic device 10 shown in FIG. 1 is the BDP 10 and the second electronic device 20 is the STB 20. The non-HDMI output unit 11 of the first electronic device 10 is the analog output unit 11, and the non-HDMI output unit 21 of the second electronic device 20 is the S / PDIF output unit 21. Accordingly, the non-HDMI input interface included in the audio control device 60 can receive the audio signal from the multi-channel analog output unit 11 included in the BDP 10, so that the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 is changed to the multi-channel analog input unit. The second non-HDMI receiving unit 66 is the S / PDIF input unit 66 in order to receive the audio signal from the S / PDIF output unit 21 included in the STB 20.

  Here, as an example, the operation of the control unit 62 of the audio control device 60 when the BDP 10 starts playback of the BD will be described. The control unit 62 also operates in a standby state where the power of the audio control device 60 is not turned on, and determines whether control information is received from the HDMI transmission unit 64.

First, when the power of the BDP 10 is turned on by a user operation and playback of the BD is subsequently started, the HDMI video signal is transmitted from the HDMI sending unit 12 to the first HDMI receiving unit 55 of the audio / video output device 50 via the HDMI cable. HDMI audio signal and HDMI-CEC control information (hereinafter referred to as control information HC) are input. The control information HC includes logical address information of an active electronic device. Here, the control information HC includes the logical address information of the BDP 10. The HDMI-CEC control unit 541 of the audio / video output device 50 receives the control information HC from the first HDMI receiving unit 55 and supplies the received control information HC to the HDMI interface unit 51. Each of the HDMI receiving units 55 to 59 included in the HDMI interface unit 51 transmits the control information HC to the electronic device to which the HDMI receiving unit 55 to 59 is connected.

 The control unit 62 determines whether or not the control information HC is received in step S101. As described above, when the power of the BDP 10 is turned on and the reproduction of the BD is started, the control information HC transmitted from the (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59 is supplied to the HDMI transmitting unit 64 of the audio control device 60. The HDMI sending unit 64 receives the control information HC and supplies it to the control unit 62. When the control unit 62 determines that the control information HC has been received, the process proceeds to step S102. In step S102, the control unit 62 determines whether the voice control device 60 is powered on. If the power is on, the process proceeds to step S104. If the power is not turned on, the process proceeds to step S103 and the power is turned on.

 In step S104, the control unit 62 controls the voice input switching unit 71 based on the control information HC. Specifically, the control unit 62 reads out the information of the non-HDMI receiving unit associated with the logical address of the electronic device in the active state from the storage unit 73 and switches to the output from the corresponding non-HDMI receiving unit. The voice input switching unit 71 is controlled. Here, since the control information HC indicates that the BDP 10 is in an active state, the control unit 62 outputs the audio signal from the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 associated with the logical address of the BDP 10. The input switching unit 71 is controlled.

 In step S105, the control unit 62 sets the audio output of the audio / video output device 50 to the mute state via the HDMI sending unit 64 and the (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59 to the control unit 54 of the audio / video output device 50. Control information HC instructing to do so is supplied. When receiving the control information HC, the control unit 54 controls the voice input switching unit 521 to be in a mute state.

   Next, a method for executing the voice input control process in the viewing system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram regarding voice input switching.

  First, as shown in FIG. 5, in step S11, the user turns on the BDP 400 and starts playing the content. When the BDP 400 sequentially receives control signals indicating power-on and regeneration start, the operation power supply of the BDP 400 is turned on in step S12, and a regeneration state in which regeneration is started is entered. In step S13, the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 transmits an <Image View On> message to the control unit 104 of the TV 100 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 452 shown in FIG.

  Next, in step S14, the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 performs <Active for all electronic devices to which the HDMI-CEC signal line is connected directly or via other electronic devices, that is, the TV 100, the STB 300, and the AV amplifier 200. Send a Source> message globally. That is, the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 transmits HDMI-CEC control information to the control unit 104 of the TV 100 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 452, and the control unit 104 of the TV 100 transmits from the BDP 400 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 352. The supplied HDMI-CEC control information is transmitted to the control unit 303 of the STB 300. Further, the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 transmits HDMI-CEC control information to the control unit 104 of the TV 100 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 452, and the CPU 104 of the TV 100 is supplied from the BDP 400 via the HDMI-CEC signal line 252. The HDMI-CEC control information is transmitted to the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200.

  In step S15, the control unit 104 of the TV 100 receives the <Image View On> message to display a video, and receives the <Active Source> message to receive the video signal of the BDP 400. The output is automatically received by the HDMI receiving circuit A101, and the video signal from the BDP 400 is displayed on the TV screen 108.

  Further, upon receiving the <Active Source> message, the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 switches to the output of the analog input switching circuit 205 that is an audio signal input interface corresponding to the preset BDP 400 in step S16. . The multi-channel analog audio signal received from the 5.1ch analog connection cable 460 is amplified by the audio circuit / amplifier 209 and output to the speaker system 270. Further, in step S17, the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 transmits a <Set System Audio Mode> message to the control unit 104 of the TV 100. When the control unit 104 of the TV 100 receives the <Set System Audio Mode> message in step S <b> 18, the control unit 104 controls the audio circuit 106 to mute the audio output from the built-in speaker 107.

  Also, when the STB 300 sequentially receives HDMI-CEC control signals indicating power-on and playback by a user's operation, the same sequence of steps S21 to S28 as in the above-described viewing of the BDP 400 is followed. Steps S22 to S25 performed by the control unit 303 of the STB 300 are the same as steps S12 to S15. In step S25, the control unit 104 of the TV 100 automatically displays the received video of the STB 300. Steps S26 and S27 performed by the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 are the same as steps S16 and S17, and the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 is an S / PDIF receiving circuit corresponding to an audio signal input by the STB 300. While switching to the output of A202, the sound output of the TV 100 is muted.

  When the power of the TV 100 is turned off by the user in step S31, the control unit 104 of the TV 100 controls all the electronic devices that are HDMI-connected in step S32, that is, the STB 300, BDP 400, and AV amplifier 200 shown in FIG. Then, a <Standby> message is transmitted globally via the HDMI-CEC signal lines 352, 452, and 252 respectively, and the operation power of the own device is turned off in step S33. When the control unit 303 of the STB 300 receives the <Standby> message, in step S34, the control unit 303 of the STB 300 turns off its own operating power. Similarly, when the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 receives the <Standby> message, the control unit 403 of the BDP 400 turns off its own operating power in step S35. Similarly, the control unit 206 of the AV amplifier 200 receives the <Standby> message, and turns off the operating power of the AV amplifier 200 in step S36.

  As described above, the audio control device 60 according to the embodiment of the present invention does not have an HDMI standard input interface but has a plurality of S / PDIF and analog non-HDMI input interfaces. The audio control device 60 having an HDMI standard output interface is HDMI-connected to the audio video output device 50 through an HDMI-CEC signal line connected to the HDMI standard input interface of the audio video output device 50, for example, a TV. It is possible to acquire and use the operation states of the other plurality of electronic devices 10, 20, 30, 40 as HDMI-CEC control information. Therefore, the audio control device 60 receives the HDMI-CEC control information generated by the reproduction operation and device operation of the plurality of electronic devices 10, 20, 30, and 40 that are HDMI-connected to the audio / video output device 50. By applying an input interface corresponding to the type of interface that does not support the HDMI standard of each electronic device based on the rule, it is possible to correctly reproduce the sound of the electronic device that has started reproduction.

  When the audio control device 60 receives and reproduces an audio signal and the audio output device 63 connected to the audio control device 60 outputs audio, the audio control device 60 automatically outputs the audio / video output device 50. The sound output from the sound output unit 52 included in the sound can be muted. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the inconvenience that the audio control device 60 and the audio / video output device 50 simultaneously reproduce the same audio.

  The audio control device 60 acquires HDMI-CEC control information via the audio / video output device 50, so that only the audio signal is automatically converted to the audio signal transfer standard without providing a high-cost HDMI standard-compliant input interface. It is possible to output high-quality sound from a sound output device 63 that is input using a compliant input interface and connected to the sound control device 60, for example, a high-precision speaker. Thereby, the convenience for high-quality sound output of voice can be remarkably improved without imposing a financial burden on the user.

(4) Modification of Voice Switching Control Method A voice control method when an electronic device in an active state is changed will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the control unit 62 when the active electronic device is changed. Here, a case where the user executes reproduction of the STB 20 during reproduction of the BDP 10 shown in FIG. 2 will be described as a change of the active electronic device.

First, when the first electronic device (BDP) 10 shown in FIG. 1 is in an active state in which reproduction is being performed, the second electronic device (STB) 20 starts reproduction based on a user instruction. Thereby, instead of the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20 becomes active.

 When playback of the STB 20 is started, the HDMI video signal, HDMI audio signal, HDMI-CEC control information (hereinafter, control information HC) is transmitted from the HDMI transmission unit 22 to the second HDMI receiving unit 56 of the audio / video output device 50 via the HDMI cable. Is input). The control information HC is an <Active Source> message shown in FIG. 5 and includes the logical address information of the STB 20 here. The control unit 54 of the audio / video output device 50 receives the control information HC from the second HDMI receiving unit 56 and supplies the received control information HC to the HDMI interface unit 51. The HDMI receiving units 55 to 59 included in the HDMI interface unit 51 transmit the control information HC to the electronic devices 10 to 40 and the audio control device 60 to which the HDMI receiving units 55 to 59 are connected.

 The controller 62 determines whether or not the control information HC has been received in step S501. As described above, when the reproduction of the STB 20 is started, the HDMI sending unit 64 of the audio control device 60 receives the control information HC transmitted from the (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59 and supplies it to the control unit 62. When the control unit 62 determines that the control information HC is received in step S501, the control unit 62 proceeds to step S502. In step S502, the control unit 62 determines whether or not the active electronic device has been changed based on the control information HC. If changed, the process proceeds to step S503. If not changed, the process returns to step S501.

 Subsequent steps S503 and S504 are similar to steps S104 and S105 described in FIG. In step S503, the control unit 62 controls the voice input switching unit 71 based on the control information HC. Here, since the control information HC indicates that the STB 20 is in an active state, the control unit 62 outputs the audio signal from the second non-HDMI receiving unit 66 associated with the logical address of the STB 20. The input switching unit 71 is controlled.

 In step S504, the control unit 62 sets the audio output of the audio / video output device 50 to the mute state via the HDMI sending unit 64 and the (n + 1) th HDMI receiving unit 59 to the control unit 54 of the audio / video output device 50. Control information HC instructing to do so is supplied.

   As described above, the voice control device 60 automatically detects the type of the output interface of the electronic device in the new active state when the electronic device in the active state is changed, and switches the input interface. An audio signal can be received.

(5) Power Management Method for Conventional Audio Control Device A conventional audio control device uses FIG. 7 as a method for executing switching processing of its own operation power supply according to the power supply state of the audio / video output device that is a sink device. I will explain. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the control unit of the conventional voice control apparatus determining that the power is turned off.

  When the power of the audio / video output device is turned off by the user, the control unit of the audio / video output device receives standby information indicating that the power of the audio / video output device has been turned off via the HDMI cable. To each electronic device and voice control device.

In step S201 shown in FIG. 7, the control unit of the voice control device determines whether or not standby information is received. When the standby information output from the audio / video output device is supplied to the control unit via the HDMI transmission unit of the audio control device, the control unit determines that the standby information has been acquired in step S201.

 When the control unit of the audio control apparatus acquires the standby information, the process proceeds to step S202, and automatically turns off its own operating power in conjunction with the power-off of the audio / video output apparatus.

   As described above, the conventional audio control device can automatically turn off its own operation power as the operation power of the connected audio-video output device is turned off. Therefore, the voice control device can prevent power saving and device deterioration due to shortened operation time while not in use.

(6) Power management method for the audio control device 60 of the present invention A method for the audio control device 60 of the present invention to execute switching processing of its own operating power supply in accordance with the power status of the audio video output device 50 that is a sink device. One embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 8. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining an embodiment of an operation for determining that the control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 of the present invention turns off the power.

  Similarly to the example shown in FIG. 7, when the power of the audio / video output device 50 is turned off by the user, the control unit 54 of the audio / video output device 50 turns off (turns off) the power of the audio / video output device 50. Is transmitted to each of the electronic devices 10 to 40 and the audio control device 60. The control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 determines whether or not standby information has been received in step S301 shown in FIG. 8, and if it determines that standby information has been received, the process proceeds to step S302. In step S302, the signal detection unit 70 of the control unit 62 determines whether the content being played back by the playback unit 69 includes a video signal based on the playback signal supplied from the playback unit 69. In step S302, when the playback unit 69 is playing back content including a video signal, the control unit 62 proceeds to step S303 and interlocks with the power-off signal of the audio / video output device 50 in conjunction with its own operation power source. Automatically turn off.

If it is determined in step S302 that the playback unit 69 is playing back content that does not include a video signal, that is, content that includes only audio signals, the control unit 62 maintains its own operating power supply in an on state and plays back. The audio signal output from the unit 69 is output to the audio output device 63.

   As described above, according to the power management method of the audio control device 60 of the present invention, the audio control device 60 operates the power supply of the audio / video output device 50 when the reproducing unit 69 reproduces the content including the video signal. Since the operation power supply is automatically turned off at the same time as turning off, it is convenient for the user to save the trouble of turning off the power supply of the audio control device 60 in accordance with the change in the power supply state of the audio video output device 50. . In addition, when the audio control device 60 is playing back content having only an audio signal, the audio control device 60 continues to be in an on state even if the operation power of the audio / video output device 50 is turned off. So that you can listen to the audio continuously.

  In the above-mentioned “(5) Conventional audio control device power management method”, the HDMI-CEC of the standby information (step S <b> 32 <Standby> in FIG. 5) that is globally transmitted when the audio / video output device turns off the operation power supply. The audio control device receives the control message, and the control unit of the audio control device automatically turns off its own operating power in conjunction with the power state of the audio / video output device. In this case, the control unit of the audio control device turns off its own power regardless of whether the reproduction unit is reproducing the content.

  However, in the embodiment of the audio control device according to the present invention described in (6), the audio control device 60 reproduces content of only an audio signal, such as a compact disc, in addition to viewing with the audio / video output device 50. When outputting, the control unit 62 can control the voice control device 60 not to be turned off, which is more preferable for the user. That is, according to the power management method of the audio control device of the present invention, when the audio control device 60 is playing back content with only an audio signal, the standby supplied by turning off the operating power of the audio / video output device 50 is provided. Even if the control unit 62 receives the information, it is possible to continue the reproduction of the content without being influenced by the information.

(7) Electronic Device Registration Method The audio control device 60 outputs signals that do not comply with HDMI output from the first electronic device 10, the second electronic device 20, the third electronic device 30, and the nth electronic device 40, respectively. A method for determining and setting the type will be described with reference to the system configuration diagrams of FIGS. 1 and 3 and FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. 9 is a flowchart for setting the type of signal output by the electronic device.

  Here, the initial state when the voice control device 60 registers the electronic device is as follows. The electronic devices 10, 20, 30, and 40, the audio / video output device 50, and the audio control device 60 illustrated in FIG. 1 are correctly connected, and the operation power of all the electronic devices 10 to 40 is off (standby power is on). Since the initial setting screen shown in FIG. 10A is displayed on the display unit (not shown) of the audio / video output device 50, the user registers the nth electronic device 40 in the audio control device 60. The operating power supply of the n electronic devices 40 is turned on. The n-th electronic device 40 whose operating power is turned on is in a state where the media disc can be reproduced and the video and audio can be output, and the n-th electronic device 40 can output the broadcast received from the antenna or the like. It is a state. The user also reproduces the content on the electronic device 40 to be registered as shown in the setting screen shown in FIG. The nth electronic device 40 outputs a video signal, an audio signal, and control information HC based on a user operation.

In step S401 illustrated in FIG. 9, the control unit 62 of the voice control device 60 illustrated in FIG. 1 determines whether or not the control information HC output from the electronic device that has been activated is received. Here, when the user turns on the power of the n-th electronic device 40, the control unit 62 receives a signal (control information HC) indicating that the n-th electronic device 40 is in an active state in step S401. Then, the process proceeds to step S402. As described above, the control unit 62 of the audio control device 60 receives the control information HC from the nth electronic device 40 through the HDMI-CEC signal line 252 via the audio / video output device 50.

 In step S402, the control unit 62 detects the non-HDMI audio signal input to the first non-HDMI receiving unit 65 to the n-th non-HDMI receiving unit 68, and determines which type of interface is used for connection. . At this time, the image shown in FIG. 10B is displayed on the display unit. When the control unit 62 detects the format of the interface to which the non-HDMI audio signal is input, in step S403, the control unit 62 associates the input interface of the non-HDMI receiving unit to which the audio signal is input with the ID of the active electronic device. And stored in the storage unit 73. Finally, in step S404, the control unit 62 displays the content stored in the storage unit 73 as an image shown in FIG. 10C on the display unit for a predetermined time (for example, 5 seconds), or transmits it by voice to the user. Shows the registration status.

 Here, the control unit 62 detects that the non-HDMI audio signal output from the n-th electronic device 40 has been input to the n-th non-HDMI receiving unit 68 (step S402), and has received it from the HDMI transmitting unit 64. The device ID of the nth electronic device 40 and the nth non-HDMI receiving unit 68 are associated with each other and stored in the storage unit 73.

   As shown in FIGS. 10A to 10C, guides or wizards in the initial setting of the audio control device 60 are sequentially displayed on a display unit (not shown) of the audio video output device 50. As shown in FIG. 10A, the voice control device 60 displays an image showing a setting method on the display unit. The user performs an appropriate operation on the voice control device 60 while viewing the image shown in FIG. The control unit 62 of the audio control device 60 automatically associates the electronic device with the non-HDMI receiving unit when the electronic device becomes active.

  As shown in FIG. 10B, the progress state until the process of step S402 in FIG. 9 is completed is displayed on the display unit as an image showing the current processing state, for example, as a pop-up window. After the process is completed, the pop-up window shown in FIG. 10B is not automatically displayed, so that the user can know that the process is in progress while the pop-up window is displayed.

  As shown in FIG. 10C, an image showing the registration result such as the detection of the electronic device and the association between the electronic device and the type of the voice input interface in step S406 shown in FIG. Is displayed. The display time of the pop-up window can be set to a time sufficient for the user using the viewing system according to the embodiment of the present invention to recognize, for example, 5 seconds. Of course, the display time is variable.

  As described above, the audio control device 60 uses the HDMI-CEC control information via the audio / video output device 50, so that each electronic device 10, 20, 30, 40 and each electronic device 10, 20, The types of the non-HDMI output units 11, 21, 31, and 41 included in 30 and 40 can be automatically associated with each other.

(8) Other Embodiments As described above, the voice control device of the present invention has been described according to the embodiment. However, it is understood that the description and the drawings constituting a part of this disclosure limit the present invention. Should not. From this disclosure, various alternative embodiments, examples and operational techniques will be apparent to those skilled in the art. It goes without saying that the present invention includes various embodiments not described herein. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention is defined only by the invention specifying matters according to the scope of claims reasonable from the above description.

10: First electronic device (BDP)
20 ... Second electronic device (STB)
30 ... Third electronic device (game device)
40 ... n-th electronic device 11, 21, 31, 41 ... non-HDMI output unit 12, 22, 32, 42 ... HDMI output unit 50 ... audio / video output device (playback device)
52, 53 ... Audio output unit (built-in speaker)
55 ... 1st HDMI input part 56 ... 2nd HDMI input part 57 ... 3rd HDMI input part 58 ... nth HDMI input part 60 ... Audio | voice control apparatus 62 ... Control part 63 ... Audio | voice output apparatus 64 ... HDMI output Unit 65: first non-HDMI input unit 66 ... second non-HDMI input unit 67 ... third non-HDMI input unit 68 ... n-th non-HDMI input unit 71 ... audio input switching unit 72 ... audio switching determination unit 73 ... Storage unit 208 ... Audio input switching unit 210 ... Video input switching unit

Claims (4)

A plurality of non-HDMI receiving units to which non-HDMI audio signals not conforming to the HDMI standard are input from a plurality of electronic devices;
A control signal receiving unit for receiving a device control signal compliant with the HDMI standard from the audio / video output device;
An audio input switching unit for receiving non-HDMI audio signals output from the plurality of non-HDMI receiving units;
A control unit for controlling the voice input switching unit,
The control signal receiving unit receives a first device control signal indicating an electronic device outputting the non-HDMI audio signal among the plurality of electronic devices,
The said control part controls the said audio | voice input switching part so that the non-HDMI audio | voice signal output from the said electronic device which the said 1st apparatus control signal shows may be output. The audio | voice control apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The audio control device further includes a control signal transmission unit that outputs a device control signal conforming to the HDMI standard to the audio video output device,
When the control unit controls the audio input switching unit to output the non-HDMI audio signal, the control unit controls the audio signal output from the audio / video output device to be muted. A second device control signal of
The voice control apparatus according to claim 1. The audio control device further includes a reproduction unit that reproduces and outputs at least one of a video signal and an audio signal,
The audio input switching unit receives an audio signal from the reproduction unit,
The controller is
When the control signal receiving unit receives a third device control signal indicating that the power of the audio / video output device has been turned off, it is determined whether or not the playback unit is playing back only an audio signal;
3. The audio according to claim 1, wherein the audio input switching unit is controlled to output the audio signal output from the reproduction unit when it is determined that the reproduction unit is reproducing only the audio signal. 4. Control device. An electronic device including a non-HDMI audio output unit that outputs a non-HDMI audio signal that does not conform to the HDMI standard, and a control signal transmission unit that outputs a device control signal that conforms to the HDMI standard;
An audio and video output device comprising a control signal transmitting and receiving unit for transmitting and receiving the device control signal;
The non-HDMI receiving unit that receives the non-HDMI audio signal output from the electronic device, the control signal receiving unit that receives the device control signal transmitted from the control signal transmitting / receiving unit, and the non-HDMI receiving unit An audio control device including an audio input switching unit that receives a non-HDMI audio signal and a control unit that controls the audio input switching unit;
When the non-HDMI audio output unit outputs the non-HDMI audio signal, the control signal transmission unit outputs a device control signal indicating that the non-HDMI audio signal is output,
The control signal sending / receiving unit, when receiving the device control signal, sends it to the control signal receiving unit,
The said control part controls the said audio | voice input switching part based on the said apparatus control signal, The audio | voice control system characterized by the above-mentioned.

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