Image display device

Abstract

This invention provides an image display device capable of performing recording and playback functions that adjust to the increase or decrease in the number of viewers when used by multiple people. [Solution] The image display device 1 includes a storage unit for storing received content, a recording and playback processing unit for playing back and displaying the received content stored in the storage unit, a video display unit for displaying the played back or displayed received content, a viewer detection unit for detecting viewer information including the number of viewers located within a range where the display on the video display unit can be seen, a viewer management unit capable of determining an increase or decrease in viewers based on the viewer information after the start of playback processing or display processing, a departure management unit capable of recording the departure time indicating the time when the viewer management unit determined a decrease in viewers, a notification generation unit for generating notification information corresponding to the departure time recorded by the departure management unit when the viewer management unit determines an increase in viewers after determining a decrease in viewers, and a video processing unit for displaying the notification information on the video display unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments relate to an image display apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Image display apparatuses have a function of recording and reproducing content such as digital broadcasting, for example. In recent years, a technology has been proposed in which an image display apparatus is provided with a sensor that detects the presence or absence of a viewer, and recording operation and reproducing operation are performed based on the detection result. However, it has not been possible to cope with a case where a plurality of viewers use the image display apparatus.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problem to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] An image display apparatus of an embodiment aims to provide an image display apparatus capable of executing a recording and reproducing function corresponding to an increase or decrease in the number of viewers when a plurality of viewers use the apparatus.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0005] The embodiment is an image display device for displaying received content, comprising: a storage unit capable of storing the received content; a recording and playback processing unit that plays back the received content stored in the storage unit and displays the received content; a video display unit capable of displaying the received content played back or displayed by the recording and playback processing unit; a viewer detection unit capable of detecting viewer information including the number of viewers located within a range where the display on the video display unit can be seen; a viewer management unit capable of determining an increase or decrease in the number of viewers based on the viewer information after the recording and playback processing unit starts playing back the received content recorded in the storage unit, or after the display processing of the received content; an absence management unit capable of recording an absence time indicating the time the number of viewers decreased when the viewer management unit determines a decrease in the number of viewers; a notification generation unit that generates notification information corresponding to the absence time recorded by the absence management unit when the viewer management unit determines an increase in the number of viewers after determining a decrease in the number of viewers; and a video processing unit that processes the notification information to be displayed on the video display unit. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0006] [Figure 1] This block diagram shows the hardware configuration of an image display device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of an image display device according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the image display device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 5] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 6] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 7] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 8] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 9] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. [Figure 10] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers becomes zero. [Figure 11] This diagram illustrates the operation of the image display device in the embodiment when the number of viewers becomes zero. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0007] The image display device of this embodiment is, for example, a digital broadcast receiving device equipped with a recording function. The image display device of this embodiment includes a sensor capable of detecting at least one of the presence or absence of multiple viewers and their relative positions. That is, the image display device of this embodiment can detect an increase or decrease in the number of viewers viewing its display. In the following description, the program etc. received by the image display device may be referred to as received content, and the received content etc. recorded (recorded) by the image display device on a storage medium may be referred to as recorded content.

[0008] (Configuration of the embodiment) The image display device of the embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the image display device of the embodiment. Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the image display device of the embodiment. In the following description, common components are denoted by common reference numerals, and redundant explanations are omitted.

[0009] The image display device 1 shown in Figure 1 is a television receiving device that, for example, displays received content obtained by receiving and demodulating a broadcast signal, records the received content as recorded content on a storage medium, and can play back the received content and recorded content. The image display device 1 also has a function to play back received content while recording it. The image display device 1 includes input terminals 201a, 201b, a tuner 202, a demodulator 203, a signal processing unit 204, an audio processing unit 205, a speaker 206, an OSD signal generation unit 207, a graphics processing unit 208, a video processing unit 209, and a video display unit 210.

[0010] Antenna 200 is connected to input terminal 201a. Antenna 200 receives broadcast signals such as digital broadcasts and satellite broadcasts, and sends the received broadcast signals to tuner 202 via input terminal 201a.

[0011] The tuner 202 selects the broadcast signal of the desired channel from the broadcast signal sent from the antenna 200 and sends the selected broadcast signal to the demodulator 203.

[0012] The demodulator 203 demodulates the broadcast signal sent from the tuner 202 and sends the demodulated broadcast signal to the signal processing unit 204.

[0013] The signal processing unit 204 separates the demodulated broadcast signal sent from the demodulator 203 and outputs a video signal and an audio signal. The signal processing unit 204 may also separate and process the digital signal input from the input terminal 201b and output a video signal and an audio signal.

[0014] Input terminal 201b accepts analog and digital signals, such as video and audio signals, from external sources. Input terminal 201b can accept digital signals from devices such as recorders equipped with a drive that drives recording and playback storage media, such as BD (Blu-ray Disc) (registered trademark).

[0015] The audio processing unit 205 processes the audio signal output by the signal processing unit 204 to drive the speaker 206. The audio processing unit 205 changes the volume of output audio or various types of sounds based on control by the information processing unit 216. The speaker 206 can output audio or various types of sounds based on the audio signal output from the audio processing unit 205.

[0016] The OSD signal generation unit 207 is a functional element that generates signals for on-screen display (OSD). The OSD is, for example, an operation panel display superimposed on a broadcast image or a playback image displayed on a monitor, and the OSD signal is a video signal for displaying the operation panel display on the video display unit 210. The OSD signal generation unit 207 generates an OSD signal representing a predetermined operation panel display based on an instruction from the information processing unit 216.

[0017] The graphics processing unit 208 is a functional element capable of performing composition processing on the video signal output by the signal processing unit 204 and the OSD signal representing the operation panel display generated by the OSD signal generation unit 207.

[0018] The video processing unit 209 is a functional element that processes the video signal output by the signal processing unit 204 and the video signal obtained by composing the video signal and the OSD signal by the graphics processing unit 208, so as to cause the video display unit 210 to perform display. The video processing unit 209 generates video signals for displaying videos such as still images and moving images, other images, text information, operation panel displays related to OSD, and the like. The video display unit 210 is a functional element that displays video based on the video signal output by the video processing unit 209, and examples thereof include a display device and a display panel.

[0019] The image display apparatus 1 according to the embodiment further includes an operation unit 211, a light receiving unit 212, a millimeter-wave radar 213, a communication interface (I / F) 214, a USB interface (I / F) 215, and an information processing unit 216.

[0020] The operation unit 211 is a functional element that receives operational input from the user (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "viewer"). Examples of the operation unit 211 include switches and touch panels.

[0021] The light-receiving unit 212 is a functional element that receives infrared light from the remote controller 212a. The infrared signals received by the light-receiving unit 212 (infrared signals) may include command signals (operation signals) received by the remote controller 212a from the user, as well as audio signals received from the user. The light-receiving unit 212 may also have a transmission function that transmits display data and the like from the image display device 1 to the remote controller 212a.

[0022] The remote controller 212a is a transmitting and receiving device that transmits signals related to commands (operations) received from the user to the image display device 1 via infrared light. The remote controller 212a is equipped with switches, dials, display devices, etc., and receives operations from the user and transmits them to the image display device 1, and displays display data received from the image display device 1 on the display device. The remote controller 212a is equipped with a microphone that can receive voice commands (operations) from the user and transmit them to the image display device 1 via infrared light through the light receiving unit 212. The remote controller 212a may be equipped with a speaker (not shown) and configured to output response signals from the image display device 1 to the user as voice. Instead of providing a microphone in the remote controller 212a, the image display device 1 may be equipped with a microphone.

[0023] The millimeter-wave radar 213 is a radar device that utilizes electromagnetic waves (hereinafter referred to as "millimeter waves") with frequencies ranging from 30 GHz to 300 GHz. The millimeter-wave radar 213 has the function of detecting the presence or absence of viewers within the target range R and the relative positions of multiple viewers using millimeter waves. Examples of the target range R include the range in which images displayed by the video display unit 210 can be directly viewed, and the range in which sounds from the speaker 206 can be heard. If a viewer leaves the target range R in the detection results of the millimeter-wave radar 213, it can be considered that the viewer has left the front of the image display device 1. The millimeter-wave radar 213 can output the relative positions of viewers within the target range R as viewer information. The viewer information includes the relative positions of reflective objects that are viewers and are located within the target range R detected at a predetermined timing.

[0024] The communication interface (I / F) 214 is, for example, a communication interface for performing IP (Internet Protocol) communication over network 30. The communication interface 214 may be configured to allow streaming reception of program content over network 30.

[0025] The USB interface (I / F) 215 is an interface that allows connection of external devices, such as a hard disk drive capable of recording program content. The USB interface 215 connects to external devices via input terminal 201c.

[0026] The information processing unit 216 is a functional element that controls the operation of the image display device 1. The information processing unit 216 realizes operations such as receiving, displaying, recording, and playing back broadcast content, etc., on the image display device 1. The information processing unit 216 has a CPU 217, memory 218, and storage 219.

[0027] The CPU 217 is a processing unit that controls the entire image display device 1. The CPU 217 implements the functional elements of the image display device 1, which will be described later.

[0028] Memory 218 includes ROM, which stores various computer programs executed by the CPU 217, and RAM, which provides a work area for the CPU 217. For example, the ROM in memory 218 stores control programs and application programs for realizing various functions of the image display device 1.

[0029] The storage device 219 is a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive). The storage device 219 can record the signals processed by the signal processing unit 204 as data for the recorded content.

[0030] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the main functional configuration of the image display device 1 according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 2, the image display device 1 includes an operation reception unit 21, a recording and playback processing unit 22, a viewer detection unit 23, a viewer management unit 24, an absence management unit 25, a notification generation unit 26, a display control unit 27, and a storage unit 28. The functional configuration of the image display device 1 is realized, for example, by the CPU 217 executing a control program, or by the hardware configuration of the image display device 1 operating under the control of the CPU 217.

[0031] The operation reception unit 21 is a functional element that receives user operations via, for example, the operation unit 211 or the light receiving unit 212, through the remote controller 212a. Examples of user operations include selecting, displaying, and recording received content, and selecting and playing back received content (recorded content) recorded on a storage medium.

[0032] The recording and playback processing unit 22 is a functional element that enables the display processing of received content related to the broadcast signal received by the signal processing unit 204 from the demodulator 203, the recording processing (recording processing) of the received content related to the broadcast signal to the storage 219, and the playback processing of recorded content recorded in the storage 219 and received content received from the input terminal 201b. The recording and playback processing unit 22 can play back content from a specified position (for example, a relative position based on the initial position of the content). In addition, the recording and playback processing unit 22 can also play back the content recorded in the storage 219 and display it on the video display unit 210 while recording the received content to the storage 219 (so-called chase playback or time-shift playback).

[0033] The viewer detection unit 23 is a functional element that detects the number of multiple viewers and their relative positions within the target range R detected by the millimeter-wave radar 213. The viewer detection unit 23 can detect and output the number of viewers within the target range R as viewer information. The viewer information may include the relative positions of viewers within the target range R. The viewer information includes the relative positions of reflectors that are viewers within the target range R detected at a predetermined timing.

[0034] The viewer management unit 24 is a functional element that manages viewers who are currently viewing content based on viewer information output by the viewer detection unit 23, after the recording and playback processing unit 22 starts displaying the received content or after playback processing of the received content stored in the storage unit 28 starts. Viewers who are viewing the content displayed by the video display unit 210 are, for example, viewers located within the range R. The viewer management unit 24 can manage the increase or decrease of viewers based on the number of viewers at the start of content playback.

[0035] The Away Management Unit 25 is a functional element that manages when viewers leave their seats while watching content, as managed by the Viewer Management Unit 24. The Away Management Unit 25 records the time and content playback position when some or all of the viewers leave their seats from their viewing positions on the image display device 1.

[0036] The notification generation unit 26 is a functional element that generates information to be provided to the viewer via the OSD. For example, when a viewer who has left their seat returns to the viewing position of the image display device 1, the notification generation unit 26 generates notification information that presents the viewer with information corresponding to the time they left their seat.

[0037] The display control unit 27 is a functional element that superimposes notification information generated by the notification generation unit 26 onto the display content of the video display unit 210 and presents it to the viewer as an OSD (On-Screen Display). The display control unit 27 can superimpose notification information onto content being played back by the recording and playback processing unit 22.

[0038] The memory unit 28 is a functional element capable of recording management information from the viewer management unit 24 and the absentee management unit 25, as well as playable received content. The memory unit 28 is implemented using a storage medium such as the storage device 219.

[0039] (Operation of the embodiment) The image display device 1 of this embodiment detects a decrease in the number of viewers located within the target range R from which the video display unit 210 can be seen, and stores the time of that decrease (time of departure). With the time of departure stored, the image display device 1 detects an increase in the number of viewers located within the target range R, and displays notification information as an OSD to viewers who have left the target range R and returned, asking them whether they wish to play content from the time of departure.

[0040] The image display device 1 is configured to present a list of departure times to a viewer when they leave the target area R and return, allowing them to select a scene from which to resume content playback. The presentation of departure times may include, for example, images (scenes) of the content in thumbnail format. When a viewer selects content to be played from the list of departure times, the image display device 1 resumes content playback from the selected scene. In other words, even if there are multiple viewers and multiple viewers leave the video display unit 210 of the image display device 1, content playback can be resumed from a desired playback position for each viewer.

[0041] Furthermore, the image display device 1 is configured to pause playback of received content during recording or during playback of recorded content if the viewer leaves the target area R, and to resume playback from the scene where the viewer left when they return. This makes it easy for the viewer to resume watching from the scene where they left.

[0042] The operation of the image display device of the embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to Figures 1 to 11. Figure 3 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the image display device of the embodiment. Figures 4 to 9 illustrate the operation of the image display device of the embodiment when the number of viewers decreases. Figures 10 to 11 illustrate the operation of the image display device of the embodiment when the number of viewers becomes zero.

[0043] [decrease in viewership] When a viewer gives instructions via the operation unit 211 or remote controller 212a, such as playing recorded received content or displaying received content, the operation reception unit 21 interprets the instructions and sends them to the recording playback processing unit 22. The recording playback processing unit 22 starts playing the recorded received content or displaying the received content upon receiving the instructions (S100). Here, playback and display of received content includes the recording playback processing unit 22 playing and displaying the received content while recording it in the storage unit 28. Playback of already recorded received content means playing back the recorded content that has already been recorded in the storage unit 28. Figure 4 shows an example of an image 210a (scene) after playback has started, which is displayed on the video display unit 210 by the recording playback processing unit 22.

[0044] When content playback or display begins, the viewer detection unit 23 outputs viewer information based on the information detected by the millimeter-wave radar 213 (S102).

[0045] The viewer management unit 24 can manage the number and relative positions of viewers located within the target range R based on viewer information. Viewer information is updated at predetermined intervals and may include movement and departure of viewers within the target range R. In other words, by monitoring viewer information, the viewer management unit 24 monitors the number and movement of viewers located within the target range R, based on the start of content playback. In the following explanation, it is assumed that there are two viewers, Viewer A and Viewer B, within the target range R.

[0046] If the viewer management unit 24 does not detect a decrease in the number of viewers after content playback or display has started (No. in S104, No. in S106), the viewer management unit 24 continues to monitor viewer information (S104). Here, a decrease in the number of viewers refers, for example, to a viewer leaving the target range R outside of that range.

[0047] If the viewer management unit 24 detects a decrease in the number of viewers after content playback or display has started (Yes in S104), for example, if viewer A leaves the target range R and moves outside the range (leaves their seat), the viewer management unit 24 determines whether the number of viewers has become zero (S108).

[0048] If the number of viewers is not zero (No. in S108), the viewer management unit 24 notifies the absentee management unit 25 of the decrease in viewers. Upon receiving the notification, the absentee management unit 25 records the time the viewer left their seat as the absentee time in the storage unit 28 (S110). The viewer management unit 24 continues to monitor viewer information (S104).

[0049] In this example, even though viewer A leaves their seat, viewer B remains, so the absence management unit 25 records viewer A's departure and departure time in the storage unit 28, and the viewer management unit 24 continues to monitor viewer information. Figure 5 is an example of an image 210b (scene) displayed when viewer A leaves their seat after playback has started by the recording playback processing unit 22, and the absence management unit 25 records the time of the scene shown in Figure 5 as the departure time in the storage unit 28. As shown in Figure 6, even after viewer A leaves their seat, playback of the content continues, and the image 210c (scene) displayed on the video display unit 210 changes.

[0050] [Increase in viewers (return)] Now, let's assume that viewer A has returned to the area R. The viewer management unit 24 does not detect a decrease in the number of viewers (No in S104), but detects that the number of viewers decreased and then increased (Yes in S106). The absence management unit 25 records that the person who left has returned and sends the recorded absence time to the notification generation unit 26. The notification generation unit 26 generates notification information as an OSD display indicating that the viewer can return to the scene at the time of absence. The display control unit 27 superimposes the notification information onto the received content that is being played or displayed and displays it on the video display unit 210 (S112).

[0051] Figure 7 shows an example of an image 210d (scene) displayed on the video display unit 210, where notification information is superimposed on the received content that is currently playing or being displayed, after a viewer who has left their seat has returned. In image 210d, the notification information 210e reads "You can return to the scene when you left your seat," prompting the viewer to press the up arrow key.

[0052] The operation reception unit 21 waits for instructions from the viewer (S114, S114 No.).

[0053] When the operation reception unit 21 receives a playback instruction (pressing the up arrow key in the example shown in Figure 7) (Yes in S114), the notification generation unit 26 generates notification information prompting the user to select a time when they are away from their seat, from the recorded received content stored in the storage unit 28 or the recorded content being played back. At this time, the notification information may also include a thumbnail image of the corresponding scene in addition to the time when the user is away from their seat. The display control unit 27 superimposes the notification information onto the received content being played back or displayed and displays it on the video display unit 210 (S116).

[0054] Figure 8 shows an example of an image 210f (scene) with superimposed notification information allowing the user to select their departure time. When the notification information 210e shown in Figure 7 is displayed, if the viewer presses the up arrow key using the control unit 211 or remote controller 212a, the notification information 210g shown in Figure 8 will be displayed, allowing the user to select their departure time.

[0055] When the operation reception unit 21 receives the selection of a time or thumbnail image, the recording playback processing unit 22 starts playback from the position corresponding to the selected time or thumbnail image in the received content that is being played or displayed (S118). As shown in Figure 9, playback of the content resumes from image 210h (scene) shown in Figure 5, which corresponds to the time of departure.

[0056] Thus, the image display device 1 of this embodiment can record the time of departure when the number of viewers decreases within the target range R, and when viewers return and the number of viewers increases, it can display the time of departure and resume content playback or display from the corresponding scene.

[0057] In the example described above, one of the two viewers leaves their seat, but this is not the only case. It can also be applied when there are three or more viewers at the start of content playback, and two or more of them leave their seats. In this case, the absence management unit 25 records multiple absence times according to the absences of multiple viewers. In the example shown in Figure 8, the notification information 210g includes multiple absence times. When one of the absent viewers returns, the notification generation unit 26 generates notification information including multiple absence times and thumbnail images. The returning viewer can select their desired absence time from the multiple absence times included in the notification information, thereby enabling content playback according to their absence time.

[0058] Furthermore, while the notification information in the example described above includes the time of departure (and the corresponding thumbnail image), it is not limited to this. The notification generation unit 26 may also generate notification information that includes the name of the content that the recording / playback processing unit 22 was playing or displaying at the time of departure. In the example shown in Figure 8, the notification information 210g includes the content name (program name). In other words, if the content being played or displayed while the viewer was away from their seat changed, it becomes possible to select the time of departure and the content name.

[0059] [If there are no viewers] If the viewer management unit 24 detects a further decrease in the number of viewers after content playback has started (Yes in S104), for example, if viewer B leaves after viewer A leaves, the viewer management unit 24 determines whether the number of viewers has become zero (S108). In this example, since both viewer A and viewer B have left, the number of viewers is zero.

[0060] If the number of viewers is zero (Yes in S108), the viewer management unit 24 notifies the absentee management unit 25 that the number of viewers has become zero. The recording and playback processing unit 22 determines whether the content being played back is recorded content or received content is being played back while recording (S120).

[0061] [When playing back previously recorded content] If the operation of the recording playback processing unit 22 is to play back recorded content stored in the storage unit 28 (No. S120), the recording playback processing unit 22 stops playing back the recorded content when the number of viewers becomes zero (S122). Since the content being played back is already recorded content, it is sufficient to simply resume playback when a viewer returns. Playback remains stopped as long as the number of viewers is zero (No. S124, S122).

[0062] At this time, the notification generation unit 26 may generate notification information indicating that playback is stopped as an OSD display. For example, if the number of viewers becomes zero while image 210i (scene) shown in Figure 10 is being played, notification information 210k such as "Playback has stopped" is generated in image 210j as shown in Figure 11. Through this operation, viewers can know the current operating status of the image display device 1.

[0063] If the viewer management unit 24 detects an increase in the number of viewers (Yes in S124), for example, if viewer B returns, the recording playback processing unit 22 resumes playback of the recorded content that was stopped (S126).

[0064] [When recording and playing back received content] If the recording and playback processing unit 22 is playing back the received content while recording it (Yes in S120), the recording and playback processing unit 22 continues recording the received content to the storage unit 28 and stops displaying the scene at the point when the number of viewers becomes zero (for example, image 210i) (S130). In other words, it continues recording the received content in case viewers return, and stops displaying the scene at the point when viewers leave. At the same time, the absence management unit 25 records the time when the number of viewers became zero as the absence time in the storage unit 28. Recording continues and playback stops while the number of viewers is zero (No in S132, S132).

[0065] Even in this case, the notification generation unit 26 may generate notification information indicating that playback is stopped as an OSD display. For example, if the number of viewers drops to zero while image 210i (scene) shown in Figure 10 is being played, notification information 210k such as "Playback has stopped" is generated in image 210j as shown in Figure 11. Through this operation, viewers can know the current operating status of the image display device 1.

[0066] If the viewer management unit 24 detects an increase in the number of viewers (Yes in S132), for example, if viewer B returns, the recording and playback processing unit 22 reads the received content that was being recorded in the storage unit 28 from the point when the number of viewers became zero and resumes playback (S134). The playback restart position of the received content recorded as recorded content may be determined based on the time the user left their seat.

[0067] Thus, according to the image display device 1 of this embodiment, playback can be stopped when the number of viewers becomes zero, and playback can be resumed when viewers return.

[0068] While several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be carried out in a variety of other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims of the invention and its equivalents. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0069] 1…Image display device 21...Operation reception unit, 22...Recording and playback processing unit, 23...Viewer detection unit, 24...Viewer management unit, 25...Absence management unit, 26...Notification generation unit, 27...Display control unit, 28...Storage unit, 30...Network 200…Antenna, 201a,201b,201c…Input terminals, 202…Tuner, 203…Demodulator, 204…Signal processing unit, 205…Audio processing unit, 206…Speaker, 207…OSD signal generation unit, 208…Graphics processing unit, 209…Video processing unit, 210…Video display unit, 210a~210k…Image, 211…Operation unit, 212…Light receiving unit, 212a…Remote controller, 213…Millimeter-wave radar, 214…Communication interface, 215…USB interface, 216…Information processing unit, 217…CPU, 218…Memory, 219…Storage

Claims

1. An image display device that displays received content, A storage unit capable of storing the received content, A recording and playback processing unit that processes the received content stored in the storage unit and processes the received content for display, A video display unit capable of displaying the received content processed for playback or the received content processed for display by the recording and playback processing unit, A viewer detection unit capable of detecting viewer information, including the number of viewers located within a range where the display on the video display unit can be seen, A viewer management unit capable of determining an increase or decrease in the number of viewers based on the viewer information after the recording and playback processing unit starts playback processing of the received content recorded in the storage unit, or after the display processing of the received content starts, When the aforementioned viewer management unit determines that the number of viewers has decreased, the absence management unit is capable of recording the time of absence, which indicates the time when the number of viewers decreased. When the viewer management unit determines an increase in the number of viewers after determining a decrease in the number of viewers, the notification generation unit generates notification information corresponding to the time of absence recorded by the absence management unit, A video processing unit that processes the video display unit to display the notification information, An image display device equipped with the following features.

2. The image display device according to claim 1, characterized in that the recording and playback processing unit, when the viewer management unit determines an increase in the number of viewers after determining a decrease in the number of viewers, plays back the received content recorded in the storage unit from a position corresponding to the time of departure.

3. The aforementioned viewer management unit is capable of determining that the number of viewers is zero. The aforementioned recording and playback processing unit, When the viewer management unit determines that the number of viewers is zero, it stops playback of the received content recorded in the storage unit. If the viewer management unit determines that the number of viewers has become zero and then determines that the number of viewers has increased, it will resume playback of the received content stored in the memory unit that had been stopped. The image display device according to claim 1, characterized by the following:

4. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein the notification information indicates that the received content recorded in the storage unit can be played back from the time of absence.

5. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein the notification information includes the time of absence.

6. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein the viewer information further includes the relative position of the viewer.

7. An image display method using an image display device comprising: a storage unit capable of storing received content; a recording and playback processing unit that processes the received content stored in the storage unit and processes the received content for display; and a video display unit capable of displaying the received content processed by the recording and playback processing unit or the received content processed for display, The system detects viewer information, including the number of viewers located within a visible range of the video display unit. After the display of the received content begins, or after the recording and playback processing unit begins playing back the received content recorded in the storage unit, the system determines whether the number of viewers has increased or decreased based on the viewer information. When a decrease in the number of viewers is determined, the time of departure indicating the time when the number of viewers decreased is recorded. If an increase in the number of viewers is determined after a decrease in the number of viewers has been determined, notification information corresponding to the recorded time of absence is generated. The video display unit is processed to display the notification information. Image display method.

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