Sony Corporation

Asahi Shimbun Publishing Company

Ichiro Kubota

Hisato Shima

Katsumi Matsuno

Minobu Hayashi

Yasuaki Yamagishi

Akihiro Uetake

Kazuhiro Hara

Noboru Fujii

Hiromitsu Aikawa

Tomoyuki Asano

Masaki Hirose

Makoto Niijima

Makoto Ishii

Masakatsu Toyoshima

Shigeki Kamiya

Provided is an information processing system including a position management unit configured to manage positions of avatars operated by users in a virtual space, a schedule management unit configured to manage a schedule of communication of the users, and a control unit configured to cause communication between terminals used by the users who are scheduled to have the communication to be established when the avatars of the users who are scheduled to have the communication gather in a predefined place in the virtual space and to cause at least one of an image and a voice to be transmitted and received.

Information processing system, information processing method, and program

A transmission control unit () of a transmitting station () specifies usable plural transmission paths (). A data supply unit () transfers movie contents file encoded by MPEG 4 to plural divisional distribution encoders () corresponding to the specified plural transmission paths (). The respective divisional distribution encoders () divide movie contents file into plural divisional distribution data in which original data file can be restored by carrying out synthesis. Further, the transmitting station () transmits divided respective divisional distribution data through transmission paths different from each other. Respective receiving units () of a receiving station () respectively receive divisional distribution data from the plural transmission paths (). A linking decoder () synthesizes plural divisional distribution data to restore original movie contents file. Thus, high speed transfer of contents file of large capacity can be carried out.

Data transmission system

A data path control device with a first interface section for connecting to a LAN, second interface section for connecting to an external network through a small transmission capacity two-way line such as a telephone line, and third interface section for receiving a large capacity data from a large transmission capacity one-way line such as a satellite broadcast line. The data path control device changes the sender address of the data transmitted from a computer to a network based on a previously set correspondent relationship, thereby controls the path so that the large capacity data from the network is transmitted through the large transmission capacity one-way line. A path of the reply data from a network responsive to the request data from a computer outputted to an external network is selected by the computer side, and in the case that the reply data is composed of large capacity data, a satellite line having a large transmission capacity can be selected.

Communication path control device, communication path control method, and communication path control unit

Data receiving device and method in which data is received through a broadcast network, the data is reconstructed into packets usable on a computer, and the packets are output to the computer, directly or through a local area network. The reconstructed packets are preferably in the format of Internet Protocol (IP) packets. A destination address allocated to the data receiving device on the broadcast network is converted, via the data receiving device, to an IP address allocated to a personal computer on the Internet.

Data receiving device and data receiving method

The present invention provides a data transmission apparatus which enhances the safety with respect to leakage of encoded transmitted data by raising the safety of transmission of an encoding key or a decoding key. It provides a large capacity transmission line such as a satellite transmission line for transmitting a large amount of data and a small capacity transmission line such as a public telephone line for transmitting an encoding key or decoding key or information for the generation of them. The encoding session key is generated by using a work key and a destination address of a receiving apparatus of the destination. Further, the decoding session key is generated using one's own address and the work key. The work key is preferably encoded and transmitted through the small capacity transmission line . In the transmitting apparatus , in addition to the encoding of the data which should be transmitted by using the encoding session converted as described above, transmission control information such as destination data is added and is transmitted to the receiving apparatus through the large capacity transmission line . In the receiving apparatus , the encoded data is decoded by using the decoding session key converted as described above.

Data transmitting apparatus, data transmitting method, data receiving apparatus, data receiving method, data transmission apparatus, and data transmission method

A bus management node,has a register for channels in use REG,and a bus capacity register REG,. Before starting the synchronous communication, each node,transmits a read-out command to the register for channels in use REG,and the register for channels in use REG,in order to read out their contents for ascertaining the number of the un-used channel and the residual capacity. If there is any un-used channel and any residual bus capacity, the node,transmits write commands to these registers REG,and REG,so that the number of the channel to be in use and the capacity of the bus to be in use will be stored in the register for channels in use REG,and the bus capacity register REG,. This enables bus management to be achieved easily in a system performing synchronous communication between plural nodes connected to the bus.

Bus management method

A bus management node,has a register for channels in use REG,and a bus capacity register REG,. Before starting the synchronous communication, each node,transmits a read-out command to the register for channels in use REG,in order to read out their contents for ascertaining the number of the un-used channel and the residual capacity. If there is any un-used channel and any residual bus capacity, the node,transmits write commands to these registers REG,and REG,so that the number of the channel to be in use and the capacity of the bus to be in use will be stored in the register for channels in use REG,and the bus capacity register REG,. This enables bus management to be achieved easily in a system performing synchronous communication between plural nodes connected to the bus.

A bus management node,has a register for channels in use REG,and a bus capacity register REG,Before starting the synchronous communication, each node,transmits a read-out command to the register for channels in use REG,and the register for channels in use REG,in order to read out their contents for ascertaining the number of the un-used channel and the residual capacity. If there is any un-used channel and any residual bus capacity, the node,transmits write commands to these registers REG,and REG,so that the number of the channel to be in use and the capacity of the bus to be in use will be stored in the register for channels in use REG,and the bus capacity register REG,This enables bus management to be achieved easily in a system performing synchronous communication between plural nodes connected to the bus.

A bus management node 11 has a register for channels in use REG1 and a bus capacity register REG2. Before starting the synchronous communication, each node 12 transmits a read-out command to the register for channels in use REG1 and the register for channels in use REG1 in order to read out their contents for ascertaining the number of the un-used channel and the residual capacity. If there is any un-used channel and any residual bus capacity, the node 12 transmits write commands to these registers REG1 and REG2 so that the number of the channel to be in use and the capacity of the bus to be in use will be stored in the register for channels in use REG1 and the bus capacity register REG2. This enables bus management to be achieved easily in a system performing synchronous communication between plural nodes connected to the bus.

A bus management node 11 has a register for channels in use REG1 and a bus capacity register REG2. Before starting the synchronous communication, each node 12 transmits a read-out command to the register for channels in use REG1 and the register for channels in use REG1 in order to read out their contents for ascertaining the number of the un-used channel and the residual capacity If there is any un-used channel and any residual bus capacity, the node 12 transmits write commands to these registers REG1 and REG2 so that the number of the channel to be in use and the capacity of the bus to be in use will be stored in the register for channels in use REG1 and the bus capacity register REG2. This enables bus management to be achieved easily in a system performing synchronous communication between plural nodes connected to the bus.

Bus management apparatus

A data transmitter capable of preventing illegal free reception of transmitted data by scrambling the same, and a data receiver adapted to descramble the received data properly despite any alteration of a scramble program. The data transmitter comprises a data source where predetermined data to be transmitted is stored; a circuit for generating a scramble program and control data; a circuit for scrambling the predetermined data in accordance with the scramble program; a circuit for generating a descramble program; and a circuit for transmitting the scrambled data, the descramble program and the control data to the data receiving terminal of each user or contractor. The control data includes a scramble key, and the scrambled data is transmitted via a satellite network or a CATV network, while the descramble program is transmitted via a telephone line. The data receiver is equipped with a circuit for descrambling the received data in accordance with the descramble program, and a circuit for compiling an intermediate code, which is included in the descramble program and is not dependent on any hardware, into a machine code.

Data transmitter and receiver

An information display method of transmitting predetermined information through a transmission path, receiving the transmitted information by a receiving apparatus, recording the information received by the receiving apparatus onto a recording medium, and displaying the information recorded on the recording medium to a display apparatus. Titles of a plurality of information are displayed. Only a predetermined number of predetermined ones of the titles are designated. The designated information is automatically and sequentially displayed. The information is associated with genres and the information is designated every genre. The information is multimedia news articles. In a state in which the designated information is automatically and sequentially reproduced, when it is instructed to display the previous or subsequent information, more detailed information, or titles of the information that is being displayed at present, such information or titles are displayed and, after that, the apparatus is returned to the state in which the designated information is automatically and sequentially displayed.

Information display method

A data broadcasting system for the low-cost delivery of character-heavy data such as newspapers and magazines. Newspaper or other data are transmitted from a newspaper publisher or service to an artificial satellite via a broadcasting center to be relayed to a subscriber. The subscriber receives the data by means of a receiver via an outdoor apparatus. The received data are sent to a recorder to be recorded on a recording medium such as a compact magneto-optical disc for later display.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Ichiro Kubota