Reference-Anchored EPG Focus Navigation Across Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
The irregular arrangement of broadcast programs in an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) due to varying durations causes offsets in focus movement, leading to potential loss of traceability and a degraded user experience when navigating between channels.
Innovation Solution
A method to control focus movement on the EPG interface by using a reference broadcast program to determine new positions, ensuring minimal left-right direction offsets and maintaining traceability of focus paths.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If focus movement is controlled based on current focus position in staggered EPG layout, then focus can navigate between broadcast programs, but focus position drifts away from initial position after multiple movements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a reference broadcast program as an intermediary element to mediate focus movement calculations. Instead of calculating next focus position based solely on current position, the system uses the reference broadcast program's position as a stable anchor point. This mediator enables consistent focus positioning across channel transitions by comparing target program positions against the reference, thereby preventing cumulative position drift while maintaining smooth navigation.
2Measurement precision
If focus movement algorithm adapts to dynamic program positions, then focus can accurately locate target programs, but traceability of focus path is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the system continuously monitors and records focus movement operations. Each focus transition is tracked and stored, enabling the system to reconstruct the complete focus path. This feedback loop provides users with the ability to review navigation history and perform reverse operations, ensuring that dynamic focus positioning does not compromise path traceability.
3Loss of information
If EPG displays broadcast programs with varying durations in proportion to play time, then EPG accurately represents program information, but irregular arrangement causes focus movement offsets
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by treating different regions of the EPG interface with different positioning strategies. For programs within the same channel, focus movement uses uniform timing-based calculations. When transitioning between channels, the system locally adjusts by referencing the reference broadcast program's position in that specific channel. This localized adaptation maintains accurate program representation while ensuring smooth focus transitions across irregularly arranged programs.
Data Source
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Figure 2B~2C
Figure 2D~2E
AI summary
The embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of EPGs, and disclosed thereby are a control method for focus movement on an EPG user interface and a display device, the method comprising: displaying a television broadcast program on a display screen; receiving an instruction for displaying an EPG user interface, and displaying the EPG user interface on the display screen in response to the instruction; and receiving an instruction for indicating the movement of a focus along a channel arrangement direction in the EPG user interface, and in response to the instruction, determining a new position to which the focus moves in a target television channel according to the position of a pre-selected reference broadcast program, so as to control the focus to move to a target broadcast program corresponding to the new position. Therefore, the problem of not being able to backtrack the movement of a focus in an EPS user interface along a channel axis direction of the EPS user interface may be solved, and the position of the focus is guaranteed to move within a convergence range that meets the expectations of a user.