Abstract: A side airbag apparatus, which deploys an airbag between an occupant of a vehicle and a sidewall of said vehicle in order to protect said occupant in the event of side collision of said vehicle. This side airbag apparatus has a first airbag and a second airbag. The first airbag has a tube-like shape, and one end of the first airbag is fixed at a seat back of a seat of the vehicle and the other end of the first airbag is fixed at a seat cushion of the seat. The second airbag has a tube-like shape, and one end of the second airbag is fixed at the seat back and the other end of the second airbag is fixed at the seat cushion. In this side airbag apparatus, the position of one end of the second airbag is higher than the position of one end of the first airbag.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the side airbag apparatus, which deploys an airbag between an occupant of a vehicle and a sidewall of said vehicle in order to protect the occupant in the event of side collision of the vehicle.

Abstract: A digital broadcasting receiver that uses a channel map containing broadcast information such as channel numbers and virtual channel numbers is described. When a user selects a certain digital channel number, a control unit consisting of a CPU makes a search as to whether or not the number exists in the channel map. If the number does not exist, “No Signal” notice is displayed on a display and if the user selects a scan instruction then, the entire range of frequency band of the broadcasting signal is scanned. If a signal that corresponds to the digital channel number exists, its broadcast is received. Therefore, a search is possible even when the user knows only a virtual channel number and the digital channel number entered by the user is not registered in the channel map.

Abstract: A broadcasting receiver that receives broadcasting signals transmitted by a broadcasting station accompanying audio signals of multiple languages and automatically selects a certain broadcasting language to be outputted is described here. The receiver is capable of displaying a “Priority Switching Language Registration Menu” on its display in order to set up and register switching of priority languages. A priority language list determined by a user referring to a language list database displayed on the display is stored into a memory together with the maximum number of audio channels set up by the user.

Abstract: In a receiver, when a channel is registered on the channel map 15, the receiver 1 registers the channel by the unit of a physical channel, and when a channel is deleted from the channel map 15, the receiver 1 deletes the channel by the unit of a sub-channel. A common user has a tendency of watching most of a plurality of sub-channels contained in one physical channel and a tendency of not watching a portion of the plurality of sub-channels which the user does not like.

Abstract: In a television receiving apparatus, a receiving apparatus 1 has storage means for storing a voice output switching table 20 registering a voice setting record 21 having the voice output format associated with the broadcasting language of the received digital broadcasting in a control unit 2. Every time the switching operation of the voice output format is made, the voice setting record 21 is selected in the registered order. Also, the receiving apparatus 1 outputs a voice signal with the language and the voice output format based on the selected voice setting record 21 from an output portion 6. Accordingly, the broadcasting language and the voice output format of the digital broadcasting being received can be switched by single operation, resulting in enhanced operability.

Abstract: In a channel selection device used in a broadcasting receiver, each time a channel UP/DOWN key is pressed for changing a channel, the channel number is changed upward/downward by one immediately and, when the key is continuously held down for at least a predetermined time lapse, the first digit of the channel number is cleared to 0 and then the channel number is changed upward/downward by 10 every constant time lapse. Therefore, the channel can be changed constantly free of a fluctuation in changing speed with passing time, so that even an unskilled user can easily guess the time required to reach his desired channel to thereby get it in a short time.

Abstract: A receiving device used in a digital television includes an automatic storage section obtains the channel information on physical channels at which a program is broadcast, when the channel information contains any other physical channels therein, registers the physical channels thereof in a channel map, decides whether the physical channel which is switched has been registered in the channel map, and if the physical channel has been registered, not to detect whether a program is broadcast at the other physical channels. In this case, information of any other physical channel is present in a VCT, this other physical channel is registered in the channel map without detecting whether a program is broadcast at the channel. Therefore, the total number of the channels to be detected on whether a program is broadcast can be decreased, thus reducing the time for performing the automatic storage function.

Abstract: In a broadcasting receiver having a function to set and select an operation mode of the receiver for each user based on input by a plurality of users, the operation mode is selected for each user to make a user setting and stored in a memory in correlation with a predetermined input pattern of an operation key. When having received a user's input in the predetermined pattern, the receiver refers to the memory to select a user setting that corresponds to this input pattern, thus switching the operation mode. It is thus possible to identify the operation mode for each user in use by simple operations.

Abstract: In a channel selection device in the digital/analog broadcasting receiver, when an instruction of the main/sub-channel change is given by ten keys, inputting by “-” key causes the main channel being currently received to be fixed, and a display device to OSD display a state of waiting for the sub-channel. This allows the hierarchical structure of the channel to be understood intuitively, and the input steps of the main channel to be simplified, thereby allowing the channel selection to be efficiently performed.

Abstract: A channel selection device of the invention used in a digital/analog broadcasting receiver, upon reception of a channel changing instruction sent from input device, tries to select a desired channel by referencing its VCT if it can find channel information in a memory and, if it could not find the desired channel and failed in channel selection, obtains the latest VCT to thereby select such a channel in the VCT that has the smallest sub-channel number in the same main channel or select such a channel that has the smallest sub-channel number in the same physical channel. Thus, if a channel specified in the channel changing instruction sent from the user has no broadcast therethrough and failed to be selected, an appropriate channel is selected automatically, thus avoiding a state that nothing is displayed on the display.

Abstract: A channel selection device used in a digital/analog broadcasting receiver changes a channel according to a channel upward/downward changing instruction by selectively using the following procedures. The first procedure B is used to search for a desired physical channel when there is no channel information; the second procedure A is used to select a channel when there is information of the current physical channel; the third procedure is used when a channel to which the current channel is changed upward/downward exceeds the current physical channel range; and the fourth procedure D is used when information of all the channels is held. Thus, it is possible to appropriately select a channel automatically and also to obtain the channel information automatically when the channel is changed.

Abstract: In a broadcast receiving system for receiving the digital broadcast, when the selection of “channel selection menu” is inputted by the user, the channel information stored in a memory is read to decide whether the configuration of a sub-channel is identified during the current operation, and a descriptor “x” is assigned to the sub-channel not identified to be made displayed in the channel information list on “channel selection display,” thereby distinguishing it from other channels. This allows the channel whose sub-channel cannot be identified to be OSD displayed distinguishing it from other channels such as for analog broadcast and the like.

Abstract: In a channel selection device of the invention used in a digital/analog broadcasting receiver, in instructing changing a channel, either one of the UP/DOWN key pair or the RIGHT/LEFT key pair can be used to change a main channel while changing the other pair to change a sub-channel. Thus, by using the keys distributed between the main channel and the sub-channels, a correlation can be given between the key operations and the channels' hierarchical construction to thereby facilitate the changing and selection of the main channels and the sub-channels in the hierarchical construction in digital/analog broadcasts.

Abstract: A TV broadcasting reception apparatus 100 has a following function: when the same program is being broadcasted at the same time between digital TV broadcasting and analog TV broadcasting, even if the user selects reception of the analog TV broadcasting, the same program in the digital TV broadcasting is found out and the analog TV broadcasting is preferentially and automatically switched to the digital TV broadcasting. Further, the TV broadcasting reception apparatus 100 has a following function: when the same program is being broadcasted at the same time between digital TV broadcasting and analog TV broadcasting, in case that during receiving the digital TV broadcasting, the reception state of its digital TV broadcasting worsens so that the digital TV broadcasting cannot be received, the program in the digital TV broadcasting is preferentially and automatically switched to the same program in the analog TV broadcasting that has been previously searched.