Patent ID: 7697822

Claim:
An apparatus for automatically selecting and recording highlight portions of a broadcast signal with audio and video signal portions, said highlight portions representing the most significant portions of a broadcast program, the apparatus comprising: an analog/digital converter for converting a broadcast signal having audio and video signal portions into digital data; a highlight portion detection unit coupled to an output of the analog/digital converter for detecting a highlight portion in the digital data converted by the analog/digital converter and outputting a control signal when a highlight portion is detected; a memory coupled to the output of the analog/digital converter and to the highlight portion detection unit, for storing an amount of the digital data converted by the analog/digital converter, and for outputting, in response to the control signal outputted by the highlight portion detection unit, the stored digital data; a digital/analog converter coupled to an output of the memory, the digital/analog converter for converting the digital data outputted from the memory into an analog signal; and a recording unit coupled to an output of the digital/analog converter, the recording unit for recording the analog signal converted by the digital/analog converter, wherein the highlight portion detection unit detects a highlight portion by calculating a weighted average level of an audio signal portion in the digital data converted by the analog/digital converter and setting the weighted average level as an audio reference level in accordance with said detection and periodically judging whether an audio signal level of an audio signal portion in the digital data converted by the analog/digital is comparatively greater by a predetermined amount than the thusly set audio reference level.