|Publication number||US8117283 B2|
|Application number||US 12/025,579|
|Publication date||Feb 14, 2012|
|Filing date||Feb 4, 2008|
|Priority date||Feb 4, 2008|
|Also published as||EP2243272A1, EP2243272B1, US8892675, US20090198794, US20120144437, US20150074720, WO2009100004A1|
|Publication number||025579, 12025579, US 8117283 B2, US 8117283B2, US-B2-8117283, US8117283 B2, US8117283B2|
|Inventors||William Michael Beals|
|Original Assignee||Echostar Technologies L.L.C.|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (14), Non-Patent Citations (6), Classifications (24), Legal Events (2)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
Since the advent of the video cassette recorder (VCR), viewers of transmitted video and audio programming have been able to privately record their favorite programs. As a result, such technology has allowed the viewer to “time-shift” television programs of interest to a subsequent, more convenient time. More recently, digital video recorder (DVR) units, often provided in satellite and cable broadcast programming receivers, or “set-top boxes,” have supplied the viewer a more convenient means of audio/video time-shifting by allowing a larger number of programs to be recorded in a more automated fashion without the use of removable storage media.
Typically, the viewer must view the previously-recorded programs or program segments on a display device, such as a television or monitor, connected to the set-top box or standalone DVR containing the recorded content. As a result, the viewer is normally limited in the number of locations at which the viewer may view the recorded content. To address this issue, audio and video content may be transferred or uploaded to a content server, such as an Internet web server or similar communication device, by way of a communications network or connection between a device containing the recorded programming and the content server. A user may then view the uploaded content using any computer or other communication device coupled to the web server over the communications network by downloading or streaming the content from the server to the device. Transfer of the video and audio data both to and from the web server in such a fashion may consume a significant amount of bandwidth provided by the communications network being employed, depending on the image resolution and length of each segment being transferred.
As used herein, a segment of the program 150 may be any contiguous portion of the program 150, possibly including the entire program 150. The example of
Generally, the communication server 402 may be a server for providing data on the Internet, such as a web server. In this case, the communication interface 414 may implement a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) interface for transferring messages and data between the communication server 402 and other devices coupled to the Internet. In other embodiments, other communications protocols, such as Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and various wireless communication protocols, may be employed in the alternative.
The processor 410 may be any processor, collection of processors, or other control logic capable of performing the various operations described below. For example, the processor 410 may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers configured to execute software instructions for controlling the communication interface 414, the memory 412, and the recording unit 416. The processor 410 may include various hardware components in lieu of, or in addition to, the software to facilitate the various operations described hereinafter.
The memory 412 may be any memory capable of storing transmitted programs, or segments of the programs. Examples of the memory 412 may include volatile memory, such as static random access memory (SRAM) and dynamic random access memory (DRAM), and nonvolatile memory, such as flash memory, magnetic disk drive memory, and optical disk drive memory. Nonvolatile memory may also encompass both removable and non-removable storage media. The memory 412 may also be extended to include external data storage, such as storage available by way of a storage area network (SAN) not co-located with the communication server 402, thus providing a large, extendable storage capacity
In some embodiments, the communication server 402 includes a recording unit 416 capable of receiving the transmitted program 150 from a content provider, such as a satellite, cable, or over-the-air broadcast programming provider. In one implementation, the recording unit 416 is configured to select one or more of several programming channels offered by the content provider in order to record one or more transmitted programs presented on the various channels. The recording unit 416 may receive the various channels of programming over a communication network connection, such as an IP connection. In another example, the recording unit 416 may include one or more tuners for receiving the programming channels via a satellite link, cable connection, or a terrestrial over-the-air antenna, and for selecting one or more of the channels for recording the transmitted programs 150.
In another implementation, a device external to the communication server 402 (not shown in
The communication server 402 may operate as follows. The transmitted program 150 of interest is received at the communication server 402, at either the recording unit 416 or the communication interface 414. The processor 410 then causes the program 150 to be stored in the memory 412. Any number of programs 150 may be stored in the memory 412 at any one time, depending on the length and resolution of the programs 150, the storage capacity of the memory 412, and other factors.
The processor 410 may select which program 150 to record and store in the memory 412 based on a number of considerations. For example, the processor 410 or some external device not shown in
In one embodiment, the processor 410 may cause one or more of the programs 150 stored in the memory 412 to be deleted or offloaded from the memory 412. The decision to delete or offload a program 150 may be influenced by a number of factors, such as the amount of time the program 150 has resided in the memory 412, a predetermined hierarchy for one or more stored programs 150, and the number of other programs currently being loaded into the memory 412.
With the program 150 loaded in the memory 412, the communication interface 414 may receive information 152 from a communication device identifying one or more segments of the program 150. For example, the information 152 may include an identification of the program, a starting point of a segment within the program, and an ending point of the segment within the program, as discussed above. For example, the information 152 may specify each of the starting and ending points by way of a frame number, a timestamp, or other form of pointer information.
Depending on the application, the communication server 402 may return an indication to the communication device sourcing the information 152 as to whether the transmitted program identified in the information is one of the programs 150 stored in the memory 412. If the program identified in the information 152 is not stored in the memory 412, a simple message may be returned from the communication server 402 to the device sourcing the information that the identified program is not present in the memory 412. Otherwise, the communication server 402 may return a positive indication that the requested program 150 is located in the memory 412, along with access information 153 indicating how the identified segment 156 of the stored program 150 may be accessed. The access information 153 may include, for example, a uniform resource locator (URL) of a web page providing access to the segment 156. Other examples may include any type of information uniquely identifying the specified segment 156.
After the segment 156 has been identified, the communication interface 414 may receive one or more requests 154 for access to the segment 156. In one example, the request 154 may include the access information 153 described above. In another implementation, the communication server 402 may provide a search menu or similar means by which a user may locate a particular segment of interest within the program 150.
In response to the request 154, the processor 410 may then deliver the requested program segment 156 from the memory 412 over the communication interface 414 to the communication device requesting the segment 156. For example, the communication interface 414 may stream the program segment 156 to the communication device, which the communication device may buffer in whole or in part before displaying the program segment 156 to a user. In another implementation, the communication interface 414 may download the entire program segment 156 as a data file over the communication interface 414.
The communication server 402 may receive multiple sets of information 152 from a number of communication devices that identify various segments 156 of the same stored program 150. No restriction need be imposed on the number or extent of each segment 156 of the program 150 identified by each set of information 152. As mentioned in conjunction with
Over a period of time, the communication interface 414 may receive sets of information 152 identifying segments 156 of the program 150 that, when taken collectively, do not involve the entire program 150. As a result, the processor 410 may cause those portions of the program 150 that are not included within an identified segment 156 to be deleted from the memory 412. The processor 410 may initiate such an operation when, for example, a predetermined period of time has elapsed since processor 410 stored the program 150 in the memory 412, or since the communication interface 414 received the last set of information 152 identifying a segment 156 of the program 150.
In the event the communication interface 414 receives information 152 for a segment of a transmitted program that is not already stored in the memory 412, the communication interface 414 may instead receive the actual segment 450 of the program from a communication device. In response, the processor 410 may then transfer the received program segment 450 to the memory 412, thus making it accessible to other communication devices. More specifically, the communication interface 414 may receive a segment request (similar to the segment request 154 discussed above) for the received program segment 450. In response, the processor 410 may then transfer the received segment 450 from the memory 410 over the communication interface 414 to the communication device that originated the request for the segment 450.
The processor 510 is configured to control the communication interface 514 and the receiving unit 512, as well as the tuner 518. Specific examples of the processor 510 may include any of the particular embodiments listed above in conjunction with the processor 410 of the communication server 402 described above. Similarly, particular implementations of the communication interface 514 may include the types, such as an IP interface, described above regarding the communication interface 414 of the communication server 402.
The receiving unit 512 is configured to receive one or more transmitted programs 150. In one embodiment, the receiving unit 512 includes circuitry for decoding, descrambling, and/or demultiplexing the programs 150, if necessary. In the case of the communication device 514 being a broadcast programming set-top box, the receiving unit 512 may also provide the DVR functionality discussed above in one example. In other words, in conjunction with the processor 510 and the user interface 516, the receiving unit 512 may allow a user to record one or more programs 150 received from a source external to the communication device 504. The receiving unit 512 may include any data storage employed to store the programs 150.
In one implementation of the communication device 504, the tuner 518 is employed to select a programming channel from a number of programming channels supplied by a content provider. For example, the tuner 518 of a satellite set-top box may receive a plurality of programming channels from one or more satellite signal transponders, from which the tuner 518 selects a single programming channel which provides a number of transmitted programs 150. In some examples, the communication device 504 may include more than one tuner 518 so that more than one programming channel may be selected at a time. In other environments, the tuner 518 may be configured to select a programming channel from a number of cable or terrestrial over-the-air programming channels.
In another embodiment, the receiving unit 512 may receive one or more programs 150 via the communication interface 514, as opposed to, or in addition to, the tuner 518. For example, the receiving unit 512 may receive one or more streaming or downloaded programs from an external source over the Internet.
The user interface 516 is configured to receive a first indication from a user of a starting point of a segment of the program 150 received by the receiving unit 512. The user interface 516 is also configured to receive a second indication from the user of the ending point of the segment. In one example, the user interface 516 is configured to receive signals from a remote control device 522. The signals are initiated by user interaction with the remote control device 522. In one embodiment, the user reviews the program 150 received by the receiving unit 512, and uses the remote control device 522 to identify the starting and ending points of a segment of the program 150 during playback of the program 150. To facilitate this operation, an output port 520 may display the program 150 to the user by way of a communicatively coupled output device 525, such as a television or video monitor, audio receiver, or the like. In another example, the communication device 504 may incorporate the functionality of the output device 525.
The processor 510 may then process the first and second indications to generate information 152 specifying the segment of interest in the program 150. The processor 510 may then transfer the generated information 152 over the communication interface 514. The communication server 102 may then receive this information 152 so that the communication server 102 may then satisfy requests for access to the segment specified by the information 152 by way of the same program 150 stored in the server 102. The information 152 may also include an identification of the program 150 including the identified segment. In accordance with this process, the user may specify multiple segments of the program 150, which may or may not overlap each other.
The communication device 504 may be configured to receive access information 153 from the communication server 402 as shown earlier in
As noted earlier, the communication server 102 receiving the information 152 for a particular program may or may not have stored the associated program. As a result, the communication device 504 may be configured to receive a reply to the information 152 indicating this fact. In response, the processor 510 may transfer the actual program segment 450 (noted in
Various embodiments as described herein may provide any of a number of benefits. For example, with a communication server storing a copy of an audio and/or video program, a communication device need only send an indication of the starting and ending times of a desired segment of the program, thus eliminating a transfer of the actual segment from the communication device to the server. As a result, the communication bandwidth necessary between the communication server and several such communication devices may be greatly reduced. This reduced bandwidth may allow communication devices with less-than-broadband grade access to specify program segments for access, thus allowing greater “space-shifting” capability for viewing the segments. Moreover, the reduced bandwidth requirements still apply even if the communication server receives its copy of the transmitted program over the same communication network through which the server receives the information regarding starting and ending times of the segment, as the server only needs to receive the program once.
Further, the storage requirements of the communication server are greatly reduced, as only a single copy of the transmitted program being segmented is stored as a result, regardless of the number of segments of the program are specified by the communication devices. The server storage requirements may be still further lessened if portions of the program that are not included in any specified segment are deleted or offloaded.
Each particular implementation of the communication server may be tailored to fit the storage capacity and bandwidth limitations of the server. For example, decisions regarding which programs to store may depend upon an expected popularity of the program. With more program storage available, the server may be capable of lowering the popularity threshold a program must meet before being stored on the server. Further, segments for other programs not immediately stored on the server may still be transferred thereto by other communication devices.
Furthermore, with the server potentially providing a single source for the segments, the audio or video quality of the segments may be more tightly controlled. Further, less transcoding from one data format to another may be involved when the server acts as the lone provider of program segments.
While several embodiments of the invention have been discussed herein, other embodiments encompassed by the scope of the invention are possible. For example, while various embodiments have been described primarily within the context of satellite, cable, and over-the-air set-top boxes, other communication devices capable of specifying segments of audio and/or video programs, such as computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and mobile communication devices, may be utilized in other embodiments. Also, while particular emphasis has been placed on the use of IP connections for the transfer of information, programs, and program segments, other forms of communication capable of transferring such data may be utilized in other implementations. In addition, aspects of one embodiment disclosed herein may be combined with those of alternative embodiments to create further implementations of the present invention. Thus, while the present invention has been described in the context of specific embodiments, such descriptions are provided for illustration and not limitation. Accordingly, the proper scope of the present invention is delimited only by the following claims and their equivalents.
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|U.S. Classification||709/219, 709/217|
|Cooperative Classification||H04N21/64322, H04N21/2747, H04N21/234, H04N21/23113, H04L67/06, H04N21/47217, H04L67/2852, H04N21/658, H04L67/28, H04L67/2847, H04L67/32, H04N21/2743, H04N21/8456, H04N21/6587|
|European Classification||H04N21/2743, H04L29/08N27, H04N21/6587, H04L29/08N5, H04N21/2747, H04L29/08N31, H04N21/845T|
|Feb 19, 2008||AS||Assignment|
Owner name: ECHOSTAR TECHNOLOGIES L.L.C., COLORADO
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:BEALS, WILLIAM MICHAEL;REEL/FRAME:020530/0165
Effective date: 20080201
|Jul 29, 2015||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4