KR20070063164A - Content Sharing Device in Home Network System - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a content sharing device in a home network system, comprising: a content providing server for providing content through the Internet, a home gateway serving as a network point for providing content from the content providing server to a service user, and a home. Wired terminal equipped with UPnP-based OS that downloads content provided from content providing server via gateway, UPnP-based IP set-top box sharing downloaded content through wired terminal, and image to display shared content It includes a device. According to the present invention, by applying the UPnP standard technology in the IP set-top box and the PC, it is possible to easily share the media content files stored in the PC, thereby providing more convenience to the user in the home network environment.

Description

Content sharing device in home network system {APPARATUS FOR SHARING CONTENTS IN HOME NETWORK SYSTEM}

1 is a block diagram of a typical home network system in the related art;

2 is a block diagram of a content sharing device in a home network system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

200: content providing server 202: Internet service providing server

204: Internet 206: Home Gateway

208: UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) based IP Set Top Box

210: video device 212: UPnP-based PC

HN: Home Network

The present invention relates to home network technology, and more particularly, to a content sharing device in a home network system suitable for sharing various media files stored in a PC in a set-top box.

In recent years, attention has focused on home networks, which focus on 'homes'.

Home network means connecting all the communication and electronic devices in the home and controlling them both inside and outside the home. The connection targets are not only video, audio and information appliances such as TV, PC, audio, telephone, fax, and printer, but also home appliances such as refrigerators, door-lock air conditioners, and refrigerators.

In the home network industry, three industries, including telecommunication construction and home appliances, should be converged.

The telecom industry in charge of building networks is fostering home networks as a new business to overcome the saturation of the high-speed Internet market. Promoting.

Construction companies also need to adopt a home network in order to differentiate and enhance their quality.

The IT venture industry is preparing for the home network business in various fields such as voice recognition technology, robot development technology, embedded software, and digital contents.

In particular, the home network industry is already well established, with the tendency to have a plurality of personal computers (PCs) in one home, network games being activated, and most households joining high-speed communications.

Unlike the environment in which PCs and certain related devices were connected to the Internet, the current Internet environment is rapidly changing to an environment in which all devices are connected and connected to each other. In particular, the current Internet environment is rapidly increasing the number of users who want to access a desired service during the move due to the development of mobile communication technology.

With these changes, the environment in the home is also changing significantly. Not only do household appliances perform unique functions, but there is a growing movement to network between products and share mutually desired information.

In addition, users are demanding an environment that can perform a desired function anytime and anywhere more intelligently than a simple remote control that used to control an existing TV or air conditioner. Various home network technologies are being developed to connect TVs and audio to each other and to connect products in the home.

Such home network technology implements a home appliance control protocol for controlling information home appliances to control and monitor each home appliance at a home gateway.

In the home network system provided with the Internet connection environment, as shown in FIG. 1, a device called an Internet Protocol Set-Top Box 108 is basically included. The IP set-top box 108 refers to an IP network, that is, a device that provides information service, video content, and broadcasting to the video device 110 such as a TV through the high-speed Internet, and the Internet network through the IP set-top box 108. Play an external media content service from 104.

However, there are various media files stored by the user in the PC 112 provided in each home. In the conventional home network system, the media files stored in the PC 112 are shared even in a home appliance control protocol or an IP set-top box environment. There is a limit that you can not.

On the other hand, as a software middleware, JINI, Home Wide Web (HWW), Home Audio Video Interoperability (HAVI), Universal Plug and Play (UPnP), and the like have been proposed as standards and are developing competitively. Among them, UPnP is a standard that makes it easy to use services provided by various devices participating in the network. For example, UPnP allows you to use the printer directly when the printer is connected to the network without any additional process such as installing the driver.

UPnP-enabled devices support the protocol defined by UPnP and provide definition and presentation functions for the services supported by the device. Services provided by UPnP-capable devices can be used through control points or internet browsers in the network.

The control point uses UPnP's Simple Service Discovery Protocol (SSDP) to find available services connected to the network and to control the service definitions described in XML language from the services. The application field of UPnP capable devices is expected to be largely for office or home use. In general, the application technology of UPnP capable devices is in the spotlight due to the lack of expertise in computers and communication networks.

UPnP is the de facto industry standard that many companies have formed to create the UPnP Forum. The UPnP network consists of a control point for controlling the device and a plurality of devices for providing a service. Therefore, the control point provides a user interface, and the user can input commands to the control point through the user interface to find and control various devices. In addition, by configuring the network using the IP protocol between the control point and the device, even if the data network, the AV network, and the control network in the home communicate with each other using different physical media, integrating into a single network if only IP is supported. It is possible.

Applicant has conceived that if the UPnP standard technology is applied to an IP set-top box, various media contents stored in a PC can be shared through home networking.

The present invention is based on the above-described concept, by applying the UPnP standard technology to the PC and IP set-top box content sharing device in a home network system that can freely share media content files stored in the PC in the living room, room, etc. of the home network environment The purpose is to provide.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object, a content sharing device in a home network system that controls the devices in the home by an Internet service providing server, a content providing server for serving content via the Internet, and A home gateway serving as a network point for providing content from a content providing server to a service user, a wired terminal equipped with a UPnP-based OS for downloading content provided from the content providing server via the home gateway; A content sharing method in a home network system including a UPnP-based IP set-top box for sharing content downloaded through the wired terminal and a video device for displaying the shared content.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a block diagram illustrating a content sharing device in a home network system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, which includes a content providing server 200, an Internet service providing server 202, an internet 204, and a home network (HN). ) Includes a home gateway 206, an IP set-top box 208, an imaging device 210, and a PC 212.

As shown in FIG. 2, the content providing server 200 may provide a service to the service users 208, 210, and 212 directly through the Internet 204, and the service may be provided via the Internet service providing server 202. Services may be provided to users 208, 210, and 212. The content providing server 200 may provide arbitrary content to the PC 212 via the Internet 204 and the home gateway 206.

The Internet service providing server 202 serves to control devices in the home network (HN), and allows the home gateway 206 to be connected to the Internet 204 or to receive various additional services.

The home gateway 206 is a means for connecting to the content providing server 200 and the internet service providing server 202 via the Internet 204, which in this embodiment is content from the content providing server 200, such as a media content file. Serves as a network point for providing service users.

The IP set-top box 208 may provide the image device 210 with the content provided through the home gateway 206, that is, the media content file, to be displayed. At this time, the IP set-top box 208 is characterized in that it is configured on the basis of UPnP. That is, the UPnP standard is applied to the IP set-top box 208 to share the downloaded content through the PC 212 described later.

The video device 210 may be, for example, a TV, a home theater system, or the like, and serves to display content shared by the IP set-top box 208.

The PC 212 is a means for downloading the content (media content file) provided from the content providing server 200 via the home gateway 206, and is equipped with an UPnP-based OS according to the present embodiment. That is, by applying the UPnP standard, the above-described content sharing of the IP set-top box 208 is possible.

At this time, the PC 212 will be limited only for convenience of description in the present embodiment, it does not characterize the present invention. For example, the PC 212 of FIG. 2 may include a media player, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, and the like, which may be equipped with an UPnP-based OS according to the present embodiment. It will be clearer in the claims which follow.

According to the present invention, by applying the UPnP standard technology in the IP set-top box and the PC, it is possible to easily share the media content files stored in the PC, thereby providing more convenience to the user in the home network environment.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated concretely based on the Example, this invention is not limited to this Example, Of course, various deformation | transformation are possible for the technical idea and the scope of the below-mentioned claim.

Claims (3)

A content sharing device in a home network system that controls devices in a home by an Internet service providing server, A content providing server that serves content through the Internet, A home gateway serving as a network point for providing contents from the contents providing server to a service user; A wired terminal equipped with a UPnP-based OS for downloading contents provided from the content providing server via the home gateway; UPnP-based IP set-top box for sharing the content downloaded through the wired terminal, Image device for displaying the shared content Content sharing method in a home network system comprising a. The method of claim 1, The wired terminal is at least one of a personal computer, a desk-top computer, a laptop-top computer, and a media player. The method of claim 1, And the content is a media content file.

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