Patents by Inventor Keiichi Shirasuka

Keiichi Shirasuka has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20120236933
    Abstract: A digital broadcast receiving apparatus with enhanced tuning speed is provided. The digital broadcast receiving apparatus includes a data separating unit that separates the encoded stream of a tuned broadcast program and a plurality of latest tuning information from a digital broadcast stream, on the basis of stored tuning information recorded in a tuning information table, a decoding unit that performs a decoding process on the separated encoded stream, and a tuning control unit. The tuning control unit concurrently executes a first reception confirmation process to decide whether first tuning information included in the latest tuning information is consistent with the stored tuning information and a second reception confirmation process to decide whether second tuning information in the latest tuning information is consistent with the stored tuning information. The tuning control unit executes the first and second reception confirmation processes concurrently with the decoding process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 27, 2010
    Publication date: September 20, 2012
    Inventors: Kensaku Saitoh, Keiichi Shirasuka, Soichiro Matsumoto
  • Publication number: 20120192244
    Abstract: A digital broadcast receiver includes an affiliated station storage unit that stores affiliated station information in which broadcasting stations are associated with information identifying affiliated stations of the broadcasting stations and reception service areas to which the affiliated stations broadcast, and a switching history storage unit that stores switching history information in which each reception service area is associated with information identifying other reception service areas; when the signal of the program being viewed/listened to becomes currently unreceivable, a tuning control unit identifies, from the switching history information, another reception service area to which switching was performed from the reception service area to which the broadcasting station broadcasting the program being viewed/listened to is broadcasting, determines an affiliated station in the identified other reception service area that is an affiliated station of the broadcasting station broadcasting the program
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 8, 2010
    Publication date: July 26, 2012
    Inventors: Kazuya Takaki, Keiichi Shirasuka
  • Publication number: 20120133840
    Abstract: Disclosed is a digital broadcast reception device that includes a plurality of tuner/demodulator units; a tuning control unit; a current position detection unit for detecting a current position; a channel scan control unit that has one of the plurality of tuner/demodulator units perform tuning for program viewing or listening, and has another one of the plurality of tuner/demodulator units perform a channel scan by tuning to the physical channels sequentially and detecting receivable physical channels; a broadcast area map generation unit for generating broadcast area maps including the receivable physical channels when the channel scan is executed, broadcast service information regarding broadcast content of the physical channels, and receivable position information; and a broadcast area map storage unit for storing the generated broadcast area maps.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 1, 2010
    Publication date: May 31, 2012
    Inventors: Keiichi Shirasuka, Daiki Matsuura, Soichiro Matsumoto
  • Publication number: 20120008719
    Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a digital broadcast reception apparatus that allows a stable viewing even if a reception environment changes along with a movement. In the present invention, based on current position information indicating a current position detected by a current position detection section and broadcast area information stored in a broadcast area information storage section, a search-mode switching control section instructs a tuning control section to select a diversity operation mode if the current position is close to a boundary of a broadcast area, and select an independent reception operation mode if the current position is not close to the boundary of the broadcast area. In the diversity operation mode, a first system and a second system are tuned to the same physical channel, and cooperate with each other to demodulate a digital broadcast signal and a make an output through a diversity process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 11, 2010
    Publication date: January 12, 2012
    Inventors: Keiichi Shirasuka, Kazuya Takaki
  • Publication number: 20090021641
    Abstract: An unreceivability detector (6) that, based on various information obtained from a signal received from a broadcasting station of a digital broadcast program being viewed/listened to, detects that the received signal of that broadcasting station is currently unreceivable and outputs an unreceivability notification, an affiliated station memory (8) that stores channel information of the program being viewed/listened to and channel information of a station affiliated with that broadcasting station, and a tuning control unit (7) that, when it receives an unreceivability notification from the unreceivability detector, retrieves the channel information of the affiliated station from the affiliated station memory (8) and permits the program of the affiliated station to be viewed/listened to, if it is currently in a receivable state, and outputs an instruction to make a channel search for an affiliated station if no affiliated station is stored in the affiliated station memory are provided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 16, 2007
    Publication date: January 22, 2009
    Inventors: Daiki Matsuura, Keiichi Shirasuka, Soichiro Matsumoto, Minoru Sota, Tadashi Sakaguchi