U.S. patent application number 12/131551 was filed with the patent office on 2008-09-25 for electronic program guide with targeted advertising.
Invention is credited to John S Hendricks.
Application Number | 20080235725 12/131551 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 25536845 |
Filed Date | 2008-09-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080235725 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hendricks; John S |
September 25, 2008 |
ELECTRONIC PROGRAM GUIDE WITH TARGETED ADVERTISING
Abstract
An electronic program guide for use with a television delivery
system is disclosed having a plurality of program menus that list
information about available television programs. The program
information includes, for example, program names and start times. A
user navigates the program menus using a user interface, such as an
infrared remote control. The user interface controls a cursor that
indicates selection of a menu item, such as a program. The selected
program is then displayed on the screen. Advertisements are
displayed as part of the program guide. The advertisements may
include targeted advertisements based on data gathered from the
subscriber and stored in a subscriber profile. The data profile may
include data gathered directly from the subscriber as well as data
gathered based on the subscriber's viewing habits. The electronic
programming guide is controlled by a set top terminal co-located
with a television set, for example, in a subscriber's home. The
guide includes an introductory menu that is displayed on the screen
each time the set top terminal is activated. The advertisement may
be displayed on the introductory menu.
Inventors: |
Hendricks; John S; (Potomac,
MD) |
Correspondence
Address: |
PATTERSON & SHERIDAN, LLP/;SEDNA PATENT SERVICES, LLC
595 SHREWSBURY AVENUE, SUITE 100
SHREWSBURY
NJ
07702
US
|
Family ID: |
25536845 |
Appl. No.: |
12/131551 |
Filed: |
June 2, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09964856 |
Sep 28, 2001 |
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12131551 |
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07991074 |
Dec 9, 1992 |
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09964856 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
725/35 ;
348/E5.002; 348/E5.006; 348/E5.008; 348/E5.099; 348/E5.1;
348/E5.104; 348/E5.105; 348/E5.108; 348/E5.112; 348/E5.123;
348/E7.031; 348/E7.033; 348/E7.034; 348/E7.036; 348/E7.049;
348/E7.052; 348/E7.061; 348/E7.063; 348/E7.069; 348/E7.071;
348/E7.073; 348/E7.075; 375/E7.019; 375/E7.021; 375/E7.022;
375/E7.024; 375/E7.025; 725/42 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04H 20/42 20130101;
H04N 5/44504 20130101; H04N 21/2362 20130101; H04N 21/25891
20130101; H04N 21/4184 20130101; H04N 21/64307 20130101; H04N
21/6547 20130101; H04H 60/72 20130101; H04N 7/088 20130101; H04N
21/426 20130101; H04N 21/454 20130101; H04H 60/66 20130101; H04N
21/26283 20130101; H04N 21/435 20130101; H04N 21/42653 20130101;
H04H 20/10 20130101; H04N 21/47214 20130101; H04H 20/95 20130101;
H04H 60/39 20130101; H04N 21/21815 20130101; H04N 21/4345 20130101;
H04N 21/44222 20130101; H04N 7/17354 20130101; H04N 21/44204
20130101; H04N 21/6543 20130101; H04N 21/2389 20130101; H04N 21/252
20130101; H04N 21/26208 20130101; H04N 21/42206 20130101; H04N
7/165 20130101; H04H 20/86 20130101; H04N 21/47 20130101; H04N
21/4755 20130101; H04N 21/812 20130101; H04N 21/8586 20130101; H04H
20/78 20130101; H04N 5/45 20130101; H04N 5/602 20130101; H04N
21/2187 20130101; H04H 60/94 20130101; H04N 5/445 20130101; H04N
21/8173 20130101; H04N 21/2221 20130101; H04N 21/443 20130101; H04N
21/258 20130101; H04N 21/4316 20130101; H04H 20/02 20130101; H04N
21/478 20130101; H04N 21/4181 20130101; H04H 60/23 20130101; H04H
60/47 20130101; H04H 60/13 20130101; H04N 21/23608 20130101; H04N
21/8146 20130101; H04N 21/4622 20130101; H04N 21/2543 20130101;
H04N 21/47211 20130101; H04N 21/8166 20130101; H04N 7/173 20130101;
H04N 21/235 20130101; H04N 21/4344 20130101; H04N 21/4821 20130101;
H04H 20/06 20130101; H04N 7/0887 20130101; H04N 21/2181 20130101;
H04N 21/4532 20130101; H04N 21/4668 20130101; H04H 60/04 20130101;
H04N 7/10 20130101; H04N 21/2668 20130101; H04N 21/4314 20130101;
H04N 21/4788 20130101; H04H 60/97 20130101; H04N 21/4331 20130101;
H04H 60/74 20130101; H04N 7/163 20130101; H04H 2201/70 20130101;
H04N 7/0884 20130101; H04N 7/102 20130101; H04N 21/4786 20130101;
H04H 60/96 20130101; H04N 21/472 20130101; H04H 60/22 20130101;
H04M 1/57 20130101; H04N 7/0882 20130101; H04N 7/17318 20130101;
H04N 21/42204 20130101; H04N 21/4312 20130101; H04N 21/4385
20130101; H04H 20/79 20130101; H04N 7/17336 20130101; H04N 21/2381
20130101; H04N 21/482 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
725/35 ;
725/42 |
International
Class: |
H04N 7/173 20060101
H04N007/173; H04N 5/445 20060101 H04N005/445 |
Claims
1. A method for presenting targeted advertisements to a plurality
of subscribers, comprising: collecting demographic information of
each one of said plurality of subscribers; presenting a television
program on a first channel to each one of said plurality of
subscribers; matching a targeted advertisement to each one of said
plurality of subscribers viewing said television program based upon
said demographic information of each respective subscriber; and
tuning each subscriber to a targeted advertisement on a different
channel than said first channel, wherein two or more of said
plurality of subscribers are tuned to a different targeted
advertisement channel.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein said collecting demographic
information comprises: learning from each one of said plurality of
subscribers' choices or interactive selections.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein said tuning comprises: offering a
subscriber of said plurality of subscribers a plurality of targeted
advertisements; and receiving a selection from said subscriber of
one of said plurality of targeted advertisements.
4. An apparatus for presenting targeted advertisements to a
plurality of subscribers, comprising: means for collecting
demographic information of each one of said plurality of
subscribers; means for presenting a television program on a first
channel to each one of said plurality of subscribers; means for
matching a targeted advertisement to each one of said plurality of
subscribers viewing said television program based upon said
demographic information of each respective subscriber; and means
for tuning each subscriber to a targeted advertisement on a
different channel than said first channel, wherein two or more of
said plurality of subscribers are tuned to a different targeted
advertisement channel.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein said means for collecting
demographic information comprises: means for learning from each one
of said plurality of subscribers' choices or interactive
selections.
6. The method of claim 4, wherein said means for tuning comprises:
means for offering a subscriber of said plurality of subscribers a
plurality of targeted advertisements; and means for receiving a
selection from said subscriber of one of said plurality of targeted
advertisements.
Description
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 09/964,856, filed Sep. 28, 2001, which
application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.
07/991,074, filed Dec. 9, 1992; both prior applications are
incorporated herein by reference as if fully set forth.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention relates to television entertainment systems
for providing television programming to consumer homes. More
particularly, the invention relates to cable television packaging,
delivery and presentation systems which provide consumers with many
television programming options.
[0003] Advances in television entertainment have been primarily
driven by breakthroughs in technology. In 1939, advances on Vladmir
Zworykin's picture tube provided the stimulus for NBC to begin its
first regular broadcasts. In 1975, advances in satellite technology
provided consumers with increased programming to homes.
[0004] Many of these technology breakthroughs have produced
inconvenient systems for consumers. One example is the ubiquitous
three remote control home, having a separate and unique remote
control for the TV, cable box and VCR. More recently, technology
has provided cable users in certain parts of the country with 100
channels of programming. This increased program capacity is beyond
the ability of many consumers to use effectively. No method of
managing the program choices has been provided to consumers.
[0005] Consumers are demanding that future advances in television
entertainment, particularly programs and program choices, be
presented to the consumer in a user friendly manner. Consumer
preferences, instead of technological breakthroughs, will drive the
television entertainment market for at least the next 20 years. As
computer vendors have experienced a switch from marketing new
technology in computer hardware to marketing better useability,
interfaces and service, the television entertainment industry will
also experience a switch from new technology driving the market to
consumer useability driving the market.
[0006] Consumers want products incorporating new technology that
are useful, and will no longer purchase new technology for the sake
of novelty or status. Technological advances in sophisticated
hardware are beginning to surpass the capability of the average
consumer to use the new technology. Careful engineering must be
done to make entertainment products incorporating new technology
useful and desired by consumers.
[0007] In order for new television entertainment products to be
successful, the products must satisfy consumer demands. TV
consumers wish to go from limited viewing choices to a variety of
choices, from no control of programming to complete control.
Consumers wish to advance from cumbersome and inconvenient
television to easy and convenient television and keep costs down.
Consumers do not wish to pay for one hundred channels when due to
lack of programming information, they seldom, if ever, watch
programming on many of these channels.
[0008] The concepts of interactive television, high definition
television and 300 channel cable systems in consumer homes will not
sell if they are not packaged, delivered and presented in a useable
fashion to consumers. The problem is that TV programming is not
being managed, packaged, delivered, and presented to consumers in a
user friendly manner.
[0009] Consumers are already being bombarded with programming
options, numerous "free" cable channels, subscription cable
channels and pay-per-view choices. Any further increase in TV
entertainment choices, without a user friendly presentation and
approach, will likely bewilder viewers with a mind-numbing array of
choices.
[0010] The TV industry has traditionally marketed and sold its
programs to consumers in bulk, such as continuous feed broadcast
and long-term subscriptions to movie channels. The TV industry is
unable to sell its programming in large quantities on a unit per
unit basis, such as the ordering of one program. Consumers prefer a
unit sales approach because it keeps costs down and allows the
consumer to be more selective in their viewing.
[0011] Additionally, viewership fragmentation, which has already
begun, will increase. Programming not presented in a user friendly
manner will suffer with a decrease in viewership and revenue.
[0012] What is needed is an economical system which can gather
television programming in a variety of formats, package the
programs, deliver the programs, and present the programs through a
user friendly interface which allows the consumer to easily select
from among the many program choices. The system must be capable of
handling hundreds of programs in different formats, be expandable
for future types of programming, include a method for billing
consumers, and be inexpensive. The present invention is addressed
to fulfill these needs.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0013] An electronic program guide for use with a television
delivery system is disclosed having a plurality of program menus
that list information about available television programs. The
program information includes, for example, program names and start
times. A user navigates the program menus using a user interface,
such as an infrared remote control. The user interface controls a
cursor that indicates selection of a menu item, such as a program.
The selected program is then displayed on the screen.
Advertisements are displayed as part of the program guide. The
advertisements may include targeted advertisements based on data
gathered from the subscriber and stored in a subscriber profile.
The profile may include data input directly by the subscriber as
well as data gathered based on the subscriber's viewing habits. The
electronic programming guide is controlled by a set top terminal
co-located with a television set, for example, in a subscriber's
home. The guide includes an introductory menu that is displayed on
the screen each time the set top terminal is activated. The
advertisement may be displayed on the introductory menu.
[0014] A set top terminal is also disclosed for generating an
electronic program guide having targeted advertising capabilities.
The terminal receives a program signal, extracts individual
programs from the program signal, and sends selected programs to
the television. Information about the programs, such as program
names and start times, is contained in the electronic program guide
for display on a television screen co-located with the set top
terminal. The program guide includes a plurality of menus, such as
program menus and menus of other features, such as interactive
features. The guide includes advertisements targeted to the user or
group of users based on demographic and other information about the
user. Advertisements are selected from a group of advertisements,
based on the user information, and the selected advertisements are
displayed on the screen. The set top terminal generates an
introductory menu for display when the set top terminal is turned
on. The introductory menu includes targeted advertisements and
other information.
[0015] A television delivery system is also disclosed for
displaying targeted advertising to a programming subscriber using
an electronic programming guide. User information is gathered and
stored in a user profile. The information may be received directly
as an input from the user or it may be determined based on the
user's viewing habits. Advertisements are associated with users or
groups of users based on the user profile information. The delivery
system includes an operations center that packages programming into
a program signal that is sent to a set top terminal co-located with
a user's television. Individual programs are extracted from the
program signal by the set top terminal and are displayed as
selected by the user via an electronic program guide. The guide
includes multiple menus having information about programs and other
features. The guide also includes advertisements targeted to the
user or group of users based on the user profile. The system may
display the advertisements on an introductory menu generated by the
set top terminal when activated.
[0016] A method of advertising is also disclosed for displaying
targeted advertising as part of an electronic programming guide
associated with a television delivery system. User information is
gathered and stored. The user information is associated with
advertisements selected from a group of advertisements. An
electronic program guide is generated by a set top terminal for
displaying menus of program and other information. The selected
advertisements are displayed on the electronic program guide. The
electronic program guide includes an introductory menu that is
displayed on start up of a set top terminal associated with the
user's television. The introductory menu includes targeted
advertisements and other information. The targeted advertisements
include advertisements for subscription-based services available
through a television programming provider, such as programming
subscriptions and interactive features. The interactive features
include, for example, Internet access, digital music, and
interactive features associated with programs.
[0017] An expanded cable television program delivery system
dramatically increases programming capacity using compressed
transmission of television program signals. Developments in digital
bandwidth compression technology now allow much greater throughput
of television program signals over existing or slightly modified
transmission media. The program delivery system provides
subscribers with a user friendly interface to operate and exploit a
six-fold or more increase in current program delivery
capability.
[0018] Subscribers will be able to access the expanded program
package and view selected programs through a menu-driven access
scheme that allows each subscriber to select individual programs by
sequencing a series of menus. The menus are sequenced by the
subscriber using simple alpha-numeric and iconic character access,
allowing the subscriber to access desired programs by simply
pressing a single button rather than recalling from memory and
pressing the actual two or more digit numeric number assigned to a
selection. Thus, with the press of single buttons, the subscriber
can advance from one menu to the next. In this fashion, the
subscriber can sequence the menus and select a program from any
given menu. The programs are grouped by category so that similar
program offerings are found on the same menu.
System Description
[0019] 1. Major System Components
[0020] In its most basic form, the system uses a program delivery
system in conjunction with a conventional cable television system.
The program delivery system contemplates (i) at least one
operations center, where program packaging and control information
are received and then assembled in the form of digital data, and
(ii) a digital compression system, where the digital data is
compressed, combined/multiplexed, encoded, and mapped into digital
signals for satellite transmission (i.e., modulated, upconverted
and amplified). The program delivery system transports the digital
signals to the concatenated cable television system where the
signals are received at the cable headend. Within the cable
headend, the received signals may be decoded, demultiplexed,
managed by a local central distribution and switching mechanism and
then transmitted to subscriber homes via the cable system.
[0021] The delivery system employs an in-home decompression
capability employing a decompressor housed within a set-top
terminal in each subscriber's home. The decompressor remains
transparent from the subscriber's point of view and allows any of
the compressed signals to be demultiplexed and individually
extracted from the composite data stream and then individually
decompressed upon selection of a corresponding program by the
subscriber. Within the set-top terminal, video signals are
converted into analog signals. Control signals are extracted,
decompressed and either executed immediately or placed in local
storage in a ROM. The program control signals correspond to
specific television programs with menu program options that each
subscriber may access through a subscriber interface. The
subscriber interface is a combined alpha, numeric and iconic remote
control device which provides direct or menu-driven program
access.
[0022] An array of menu templates are generated by a either a
computer program within the set-top terminal or by the cable
headend. The menu templates are generated using the program control
information signals received from the Operations Center. A computer
program within the set top terminal generates the on-screen menu
displays and allocates a specific menu program option for each
program signal. A combined alpha and numeric remote control
provides the user interface to each program signal, allowing
selection of a specific menu option which corresponds to a
particular program signal.
[0023] 2. Operations Center and Digital Compression System
[0024] The Operations Center performs two primary services,
packaging television programs and generating the program control
signal. At the Operations Center television programs are
accumulated from various sources in both analog and digital form.
The programs are then packaged into groups and categories which
allow for easy menu access to programs and provides optimal
marketing of programs to subscribers. The packaging process also
accounts for any groupings by transponder which are necessary.
After a packaging scheme is developed, the program control
information which, among other things, describes the packaging, is
generated by a computer and delivered with the packaged programs to
the head end and/or subscriber. The system also accommodates local
cable and television companies with programming time for local
advertising and/or programming time availability.
[0025] The delivery system employs digital compression techniques
to increase existing satellite transponder capacity by at least a
6:1 ratio, resulting in a six-fold increase in program delivery
capability. The input signals are compressed, combined and encoded
prior to satellite transmission, and subsequently transponded to
various receive sites. There are a number of compression algorithms
that presently exist which can achieve the resultant increase in
capacity and improved signal quality desired for the invention.
[0026] 3. System Control
[0027] Network management, control and monitoring of all
compressors and decompressors in the network, is performed by a
network controller at the cable headend, where program selection
activity, and account and billing information is monitored. In the
preferred embodiment, the network controller monitors, among other
things, automatic poll-back responses from the set-top terminals
remotely located at each subscribers' home. The polling and
automatic report-back cycle occurs frequently enough to allow the
network controller to maintain accurate account and billing
information as well as monitor authorized channel access. In the
simplest embodiment, information to be sent to the network
controller will be stored in ROM within each subscriber's set-top
terminal and retrieved only upon polling by the network
controller.
[0028] Control information from the set top terminal will be sent
to the network controller at the cable headend and not directly to
the operations center. The digital compression and delivery system
of the preferred embodiment provides a one-way path from the
Operations Center to the cable headend. Thus, program monitoring
and selection control will take place only at the cable headend by
the local cable company and its decentralized network controllers
(i.e., decentralized relative to the Operations Center which is
central to the program delivery system). The local cable company
will in turn be in communication with the operations center or a
regional control center which accumulates return data from the
set-top terminal for statistical or billing purposes.
Alternatively, the operations center, and statistical and billing
sites could be collocated.
[0029] 4. Menu-Driven Program Selection
[0030] At a given receive site, any of the compressed signals may
be demultiplexed or individually extracted from the data stream and
passed from the cable headend over the cable system to the
subscriber's set-top terminal. Within the set-top terminal, the
individual compressed signals are decompressed and either placed in
local storage (from which the menu template may be created),
executed immediately, or sent directly to the screen. A combined
alpha, numeric and iconic remote control device provides the
subscriber interface to the system.
[0031] Through this interface, the subscriber may select desired
programming through the systems menu-driven scheme or by directly
accessing a specific channel by its actual number. The menu-driven
scheme provides the subscriber with one-step access to all major
menus, ranging from hit movies to specialty programs. From any of
the major menus, the subscriber can in turn access submenus and
minor menus by alpha character access. By using menu-driven, iconic
or alpha-character access, the subscriber can access desired
programs by simply pressing a single button rather than recalling
from memory and pressing the actual channel number to make a
selection. The subscriber can access regular broadcast and basic
cable television stations by using either the numeric keys on the
remote control and pressing the corresponding channel number, or
one of the menu icon selection options.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0032] FIG. 1 is a schematic of the overall system design.
[0033] FIG. 2 is a schematic of the primary components of the
invention.
[0034] FIG. 3a is a diagram of the bandwidth allocation for a 750
mHz system.
[0035] FIG. 3b is a diagram/chart of the compressed channel
allocation for the system.
[0036] FIG. 3c is a diagram showing how three cable television
systems with different bandwidths may use the program delivery
system of the present invention simultaneously.
[0037] FIG. 3d is a diagram showing three different cable headend
systems, each system receiving the entire satellite signal and
stripping those parts of the signal which cannot be handled by the
local cable system.
[0038] FIG. 3e is a diagram showing dynamic change in bandwidth
allocation from a typical week day prime time signal.
[0039] FIG. 4a is a block diagram of the Operations Center and
Master Control Site.
[0040] FIG. 4b is a block diagram of the computer assisted
packaging shown in FIG. 4a.
[0041] FIG. 5 is a flow chart of the processing occurring at the
Operations Center.
[0042] FIG. 6 is a chart of the program control information carried
by the program control information signal.
[0043] FIG. 7a is a block diagram of the internals of the set top
terminal.
[0044] FIG. 7b is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of
the internals of the set top terminal.
[0045] FIG. 8a is a perspective front view of a set top
terminal.
[0046] FIG. 8b is a perspective rear view of a set top
terminal.
[0047] FIG. 9a is a schematic of a basic decompression box and
upgrade module, with the associated connections.
[0048] FIG. 9b is a schematic of an alternative embodiment of a
simple decompression unit and upgrade module, with associated
connections.
[0049] FIG. 10a is a drawing of storage for on-screen menu
templates stored in graphics memory of the set top terminal.
[0050] FIG. 10b is a drawing showing the hierarchical storage of
graphics memory for the set top terminal.
[0051] FIG. 10c is a drawing of a flow chart showing the steps
required for the microprocessor to retrieve, combine and display a
menu.
[0052] FIG. 10d is a drawing of a flow chart showing the steps
required for the microprocessor to sequence program menus.
[0053] FIG. 11a is a schematic showing the two parts of a remote
control unit.
[0054] FIG. 11b is a drawing of the complete remote control derived
from FIG. 11a.
[0055] FIG. 12a is a perspective view of the preferred remote
control unit of the present invention.
[0056] FIG. 12b is another drawing of the preferred remote control
unit shown in FIG. 12a.
[0057] FIG. 13 is a flow chart of the progression of primary menus
in the menu driven system of the set top terminal.
[0058] FIG. 14a is a drawing of the basic menus used in the present
invention, including the ten major menus represented by icons.
[0059] FIG. 14b is a drawing of the basic menus used in the present
invention, in addition to FIG. 14a.
[0060] FIGS. 15a-15b are drawings of introductory menus.
[0061] FIGS. 16a-16e are drawings of menus related to program guide
services.
[0062] FIGS. 17a-17c are drawings of interactive television
promotional menus, for Levels A-C.
[0063] FIGS. 17d-17j are drawings of submenus for interactive
television services, Level A.
[0064] FIGS. 18a-181 are drawings of interactive services, Level B,
particularly related to on-screen airline reservations.
[0065] FIGS. 19a-19e are drawings of menus for digital audio
services.
[0066] FIGS. 20-28 illustrate many of the menus presented in the
preceding Figures.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0067] FIG. 1 shows an overview of the cable television menu driven
program delivery system 200. The Operations Center 202 is shown
receiving external programming signals which correspond to
particular programming categories that are available for a
subscriber's viewing. These external signals may be in analog or
digital form and may be received via landline, microwave
transmission, or satellite. Some of these external signals may be
transmitted from the program source to the Operations Center 202 in
compressed digital format or other nonstandard digital formats.
These external signals are received and packaged along with
programming that is stored at the Operations Center 202 (not shown
here).
[0068] Examples of external program sources 204 shown in FIG. 1
are: Sporting events, children's programs, documentaries, high
definition TV sources, specialty channels, interactive services,
weather, news, and other nonfiction or entertainment. Any source
that can provide either audio or video or both may be utilized to
provide programming to the Operations Center 202.
[0069] After packaging, the packaged television program signal is
prepared for satellite transmission 206 and sent from the
Operations Center 202 to the cable headend 208 via satellite
transmission 206. Depending on the specific embodiment, the
television program signal may need to be compressed,
combined/multiplexed, encoded, mapped, modulated, upconverted and
amplified. This system, which is intended to be compatible with
existing C and Ku Band satellite transmission 206 technologies,
accepts video, audio and data signals ranging in signal quality,
and input from a number of sources.
[0070] Upon receipt of the programming signal at the cable headend
208, the signal is again treated if necessary and sent into a
concatenated cable system to the subscriber's home. The signal
reaches the subscribers home in a compressed format and must be
decompressed prior to viewing. Included in the delivered program
signal is information which enables equipment at the subscriber's
home to display menus for choosing particular programs. Depending
on the particular embodiment, the television program signal may
arrive at the subscriber's home via one or more coaxial cables,
fiber cables, twisted pairs, cellular telephone connections, or
personal communications network (PCN) hookups.
[0071] This connection between the subscriber's home and the cable
headend 208 allows for two-way communications. Utilizing this
two-way communications, the cable headend 208 receives information
about a subscriber's account, billing, and programs viewed. Also,
the cable headend 208 is capable of sending computer data or
computer software information to the subscriber's home.
[0072] As shown in FIG. 1, an analog cable TV system 210 can
continue to exist alongside and within the digitally compressed
system of the present invention. The digital transmissions do not
effect the analog system. In fact, the analog cable signal may be
transmitted simultaneously on the same cable as the digital signal.
The cable headends may continue to supply subscribers with local
channels in an analog signal format.
[0073] FIG. 2 shows a more detailed overview of the operation of
the present invention. The Operations Center 202 shown performs
program packaging and delivery control. In the preferred
embodiment, the packaged program signal will be treated at a master
control uplink site 211 prior to being transmitted to the satellite
206. Various satellite multi-accessing schemes and architectures
can be used with the system, including both single channel per
transponder time division multiplex (TDM) and multiple channel per
transponder single channel per carrier (SCPC). Time division
multiplexing is the more desirable scheme. The signal is
transmitted from the satellite 206 to the cable headend 208 where a
computer system including a digital switch treats the signal and
delivers it through cables to a subscriber's home. In alternate
embodiments, multiple Operations Center 202 and multiple uplink
sites can be simultaneously utilized.
[0074] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, two cables 216 are used
between the cable headend 208 and the subscriber's home. In this
particular embodiment, analog signals, digitally compressed
signals, other digital signals and up-stream/interactivity signals
are sent and received over the two cables 216.
[0075] The cable headend 208 receives the digitally compressed and
multiplexed signal from the satellite 206 and processes the signal
for further distribution to the subscriber homes. The cable headend
208 performs two primary functions in the cable delivery system. It
will act as a signal processor 212 and distribution center for
routing the digitally compressed signals to subscribers and it will
act as a network controller 214 receiving information from
subscribers and passing the information on to the Operations Center
202 or other remote sites (such as regional, statistical and
billing sites not shown). In order to perform these two functions,
the cable headend 208 of the preferred embodiment is equipped with
two computer processors working in unison. Use of two processors
performing different functions increases the speed and capability
of the cable headend 208 without a significant increase in cost.
One processor, the signal processor 212, handles the receiving and
processing of the satellite 206 signal for distribution to
subscribers. The second processor acts as a network controller 214
and monitors activity of the subscriber's set top terminal 220. The
cable headend 208 can be operated by one CPU or a series of CPU's
which perform the signal processing and network control
functions.
[0076] The signal processor 212 will treat the signal as necessary
for use by the subscriber's set top terminal 220. In the simplest
embodiment, the amount of processing that is necessary by the
signal processor 212 is limited to demultiplexing and frequency
allocation. However, in alternative embodiments, the signal
processor 212 demultiplexes the signal, allocates frequencies and
then re-multiplexes the signal using a different multiplexing
scheme prior to the signal's distribution to the subscriber. In
addition, for embodiments in which the control of local
availability time is desired at the cable headend 208, the signal
processor 212 must be capable of compressing and adding additional
signals to the satellite 206 signal. In order to incorporate local
programming, the signal processor 212 would demultiplex the
satellite 206 signal, compress the local programming, combine the
compressed local program with the satellite 206 signal and then
multiplex the signal prior to delivery to the subscriber terminals.
Most of the activities necessary for incorporating local
programming will be automatically performed by the signal processor
212. In the preferred embodiment, the signal processor 212
incorporates all the necessary digital switching capability to
serve numerous subscribers.
[0077] Signals received by the cable headend 208 must be
decompressed before transmission from headend to subscriber
location only when the compression algorithm used for the cable
system differs from the one used for satellite transmission 206.
This difference may result from different bandwidth constraints
between the cable transmission media and the satellite 206
transponder. Such a difference would necessitate the use of
separate compression algorithms to maintain desired signal quality
and throughput over both of the transmission mediums.
[0078] System control is performed by the network controller 214.
The primary task of the network controller 214 at the cable headend
208 is to manage the configuration of the set top terminals, which
includes receiving and processing signals from the set top terminal
units. The network controller 214 must also monitor selections at
subscribers' homes, maintain accurate account and billing
information, authorize subscriber channel access, and authorize
particular set top terminals to operate in the system. Information
required to operate the network will be stored in memory (either in
RAM, ROM, magnetic or optical Read/Write) at the cable headend 208
and also in memory (RAM and/or ROM) within each subscriber's set
top terminal 220. Two-way communications between the network
controller 214 and set top terminal 220 will occur over cable
lines. Interactive television programming can be accommodated
through the network controller 214. In addition, the network
controller 214 will be able to access set top terminals via phone
lines for trouble shooting, special features or sophisticated
reprogramming.
[0079] The network controller 214 regularly polls each set top
terminal 220 to acquire needed information to operate the system.
The network controller 214 sends signals to set top terminals to
authorize their operation and to authorize access to specific
channels. If a subscriber has failed to pay a recent bill, the
network controller 214 can deauthorize the subscriber's set top
terminal 220. When a subscriber orders a program or channel the
network controller 214 checks the subscriber's account for good
standing and then authorizes the access by signaling the set top
terminal 220.
[0080] To perform its functions, the network controller 214 must
work closely with the signal processor 212. In many instances the
program control information signal received from the Operations
Center 202 must be modified prior to being sent to the set top
terminals. These modifications to the program control information
are made by the network controller 214 working in conjunction with
the signal processor 212 to send a set top terminal 220 control
information stream (STTCIS). From the signal processor 212, the
network controller 214 receives the program control information
signal which includes cable franchise specific information added by
the Operations Center 202. The network controller 214 modifies the
program control information signal, if necessary, and communicates
the new information to the signal processor 212. The signal
processor 212 then forwards the information to the set top terminal
220 in the form of the STTCIS. In most instances the network
controller 214 will modify the program control information signal
by adding additional information. In a simple embodiment the
program control information signal can be passed through the cable
headend 208 to the set top terminal 220 without any
modifications.
[0081] Although the signal processor 212 will handle the addition
of simple local availabilities (e.g. local advertisements) into the
signal sent to the set top terminal 220, the network controller 214
will handle any of the more sophisticated local programming needs
such as interactive programming and certain data services. The
network controller 214 will receive any electronic signals sent by
the set top terminal 220 including those in response to interactive
service requests and some data service requests. The network
controller 214 coordinates the necessary switching and access to
allow the subscriber to enjoy these services.
[0082] The network controller 214 has the capability of performing
"on the fly programming" changes, assisting in masking portions of
subscriber's television screens (split screen video), assist in
selecting different audio signals for the same video (foreign
languages), assist in interactive features, create tiered
programming, etc. For last minute changes to programming (such as
for a local emergency or important regional events), an operator
using the network controller 214 can modify the program control
information signal "on the fly" and change menus available to the
subscriber. This accommodates short notice changes to program
packaging that can not be provided to the Operations Center 202 in
advance. In order to accommodate split screen techniques for promo
and demo video (which will be described later), those undesired
video portions of the screen must be masked. The network controller
214 can send the necessary control information to inform the set
top terminal 220 to mask portions of a specific channel's video.
For example, a video channel with a split screen showing four
separate videos would require a 3/4 mask to focus the viewer on the
featured video clip.
[0083] Tiered programming allows different users to view different
video even though they are "tuned" to the same channel. For
example, the network controller 214 may know the demographics of
its subscriber's through a database, by "learning" from prior
subscriber choices, from an interactive selection, or from other
means. Using the demographics information, the network controller
214 may target commercials to the correct audience by showing
different commercials to subscriber's with different demographics.
Even though subscriber's will believe they are "tuned" to one
channel, they will be switched to a different channel for the
tiered video. Alternatively, the subscriber's may be offered an
option of several commercials from which to choose.
[0084] To accommodate foreign speaking subscribers, multiple audio
channels for television programming may be provided. The subscriber
may be shown menus of programs available in his native language.
The function of choosing the correct audio to correspond to the
selected language may be handled by either the set top terminal 220
or the network controller 214 depending upon the configuration.
Local programming in several languages or additional audio channels
for a foreign language translation of a popular television program
may be provided by the network controller 214. Using a
picture-on-picture feature, sign language may be similarly made
available to certain set top terminals for the deaf. Also, a text
overlay may be easily produced on the lower part of the screen for
the deaf.
[0085] In the more sophisticated and expensive embodiments, the
network controller 214 can act as a central computer and provide
intra-set top terminal interactive games, inter-set top terminal
interactive games, computer bulletin board type services, message
services (Electronic mail) etc. For example, a subscriber may play
war games with six of his (anonymous) fellow subscribers each in
their own home each operating a separate tank. The network
controller 214 gathers the players via set top terminal
communications and acts as the referee. A bulletin board or message
system can be set up to discuss a particular program such as "Twin
Peaks Whodunit" for enthusiasts. These interactive features are
further described below with the interactive services level B menu
and the set top terminal hardware upgrade level B interactive
unit.
[0086] Also shown in FIG. 2 is the set top terminal 220 that
receives the signals from the cable headend 208 and manipulates
them for the subscriber. The set top terminal 220 is equipped with
local computer memory and the capability of interpreting the
digitally compressed signal to produce menus for the subscriber.
Although the set top terminal 220 is shown on top of the
subscriber's television 222, it may be placed anywhere in the
subscriber's home that is accessible by the remote control. The
remote control communicates the subscriber's selections to the set
top terminal 220. The subscriber's selections are generally based
upon menus or other prompts displayed on the television screen. A
typical menu is shown in FIG. 2 on the television screen.
[0087] One of the achievements of the present invention is
effective utilization of digital compression technology by
packaging television programs into categories that allow easy
access to television programs by consumers. With current digital
compression techniques for video, the typical 50-channel capacity
cable satellite receiving system can be increased to 300 channels.
Presently, one transponder is used for each satellite delivered
channel. The preferred embodiment uses 18 satellite transponders
and compression ratios of 4/1 to 8/1 to achieve a capacity of 136
satellite delivered channels. More transponders or higher
compression ratios can be used to deliver up to the channel
capacity of any existing cable system.
[0088] Typical program packaging and delivery first involves the
digitizing of the video signals. This is then followed by one of a
variety of digital compression techniques that are available.
Following compression the channels must be multiplexed and sent to
the satellite 206 dish that will provide the uplink. A variety of
multiplexing schemes may be used in the system. In some situations,
it may be advantageous to use different multiplexing schemes in
different parts of the overall system. In other words, one
multiplexing scheme may be used for satellite transmission 206 and
a second remultiplexing scheme for the land transmission.
[0089] Once the signal has arrived at the uplink or master control
site, it must be modulated, upconverted, and amplified. Various
types of satellites and transponders capable of handling digital
signals may be used in this cable television packaging and delivery
system. An example of a digital satellite that may be used is the
AT&T Telstar 303.
[0090] In order to achieve the required throughput of video and
audio information for the system, digital compression techniques
for video are employed. A television signal is first digitized. The
object of digitization is two-fold: First, in the case of an analog
signal, like a television picture, digitization allows the signal
to be converted from a wave-form into a digital binary format.
Secondly, standard digital formats are designed to have the
resulting pictures or video stills take up less space on their
respective storage mediums. Essentially, standard digital formats
define methods of compression.
[0091] A video screen is divided into picture elements known as
pixels. Images define one pixel at a time are referred to as
"bit-mapped" images. Most compression techniques take the
bit-mapped images and convert them into a series of mathematical
algorithms both to reduce storage space and to allow for the
mathematical manipulation of images that is often not possible with
analog formats. This is possible because many images have pixels
that repeat themselves. For example, a photograph of a blue,
cloudless sky will have a great number of "repeating" picture
elements. This redundancy can be represented with great precision
by mathematical formulas. Finally, once images have digitized, the
standard digitized formats also include techniques required to
re-render the images into their final form, either fully bit-mapped
or into an analog wave-form. There are three basic digital
compression techniques: within-frame (intraframe), frame-to-frame
(interframe), and within-carrier. Intraframe compression processes
each frame in a television picture to contain fewer visual details
and, therefore, the picture contains fewer digital bits. For
example, information on blocks of pixels is sent rather than
individual digitized pixels themselves. A six by six block of
pixels contains thirty-six pixels. Each pixel can be defined by an
eight-bit word. Therefore, a six by six block of pixels equals two
hundred eighty-eight bits. If the information on the block rather
than the individual pixels themselves, is transmitted, this reduces
the amount of information transmitted. Blocks of various sizes may
be used as is known by those skilled in the art.
[0092] Interframe compression transmits only changes between
frames, thus omitting elements repeated in successive frames.
Motion prediction technology and motion detection technology are
necessary to determine what portions of a changing picture may be
compressed. Therefore, if a block does not vary between several
frames, the block is transmitted once, and repeated at the receive
site for successive frames.
[0093] Within-carrier compression allows the compression ratio to
dynamically vary depending upon the amount of changes between
frames. If a large number of changes occur between frames, the
compression ratio drops from, for example, sixteen-to-one to
eight-to-one. If action is intense, the compression ratio may dip
to four to one.
[0094] Various compression methods are used for the above
techniques. In vector quantization, a block is compared to a
library of standard blocks and a best fit comparison is made
between the two. Each block in the library has a corresponding
sixteen bit code. Only this code is transmitted to represent the
block, rather than the actual block of pixels itself. Therefore, a
two hundred eighty-eight bit block of pixels is converted into a
sixteen bit code resulting in a compression ratio of: 288 bits/16
bits'18. The converse process is performed at the receive site to
convert the sixteen bit codes into two hundred eighty-eight bit
blocks for reproduction on a television receiver. Other types of
compression are known to those skilled in the art, including, for
example, discrete cosine transform ("DCT").
[0095] Several standard digital formats representing both
digitizing standards and compression standards have been developed.
For example, JPEG (joint photographic experts group) is a standard
for single picture digitization. Motion picture digitization may be
represented by standards such as MPEG or MPEG2 (motion picture
engineering group specification). Other proprietary standards have
been developed in addition to these. Although MPEG and MPEG2 for
motion pictures are preferred in the present invention, any
reliable digital format with compression may be used with the
present invention.
[0096] Various hybrids of the above compression techniques have
been developed by several companies including AT&T, Compression
Labs, Inc., General Instrument, Scientific-Atlanta, Philips, and
Zenith. As is known by those skilled in the art, any of the
compression techniques developed by these companies, and other
known techniques, may be used with the present invention.
[0097] FIG. 3a shows effective allocation of 750 mHz of bandwidth
for television programming. In FIG. 3a bandwidth is allocated for
both analog and digitally compressed signals. In the preferred
embodiment, the bandwidth is divided so that each category of
program receives a portion of the bandwidth. These categories
correspond with major menus of the user interface software. The
representative categories shown in FIG. 3a include: (1) high
definition TV made possible through the use of compression
technology, (2) A La Carte Channel category which provides
specialty channels for subscription periods such as monthly, and
(3) pay-per-view.
[0098] FIG. 3b shows a chart of compressed channel allocation for a
variety of programming categories that have been found to be
desirable to subscribers. By grouping similar shows or a series of
shows into blocks of channels, the system is able to more
conveniently display similar programming with on-screen television
menus. For example, in the movie category, which has the greatest
allocation of channels, the same movie may be shown continuously
and simultaneously on different channels. Each channel starts the
movie at a different time allowing the subscriber to choose a more
suitable movie starting time.
[0099] In order to accommodate cable TV systems that have different
bandwidths and channel capacities, the television programming and
television program control information may be divided into parts
such as priority one, two, three. The large bandwidth cable TV
systems can accommodate all the parts of the television programming
and all parts of the television programming control information.
Those cable TV systems with a more limited bandwidth are able to
use the program delivery system 200 by only accepting the number of
parts that the cable system can handle within its bandwidth.
[0100] For instance, as is shown in FIG. 3c, three cable television
systems with different bandwidths may use the program delivery
system 200 simultaneously with each system accepting only those
parts of the information sent which it is capable of handling.
Priority one television programming and menus 230 are accepted by
all three systems. Priority two television programming and menus
233 are not accepted by the cable television system whose capacity
is the smallest or in this case 330 mHz (40 channels) system.
Priority two television programming and menus 233 are accepted and
used by the two larger capacity cable television systems shown.
Priority three television programming and menus 236 are only used
by the largest capacity television system which is capable of
handling all three parts--Priority one, two and three programming
and menu information.
[0101] With this division of television programming and menus, the
program delivery system 200 may be utilized simultaneously by a
variety of concatenated cable systems with varying system
capacities. By placing the heavily watched or more profitable
programming and menus in the Priority one division, both users and
owners of the cable TV systems will be accommodated as best as
possible within the limited bandwidth.
[0102] FIG. 3d shows three different cable headend 208 systems,
each system receiving the entire satellite signal from the
Operations Center 202 and stripping those parts of the signal which
cannot be handled by the local cable system due to bandwidth
limitations. In this particular embodiment, the three local cable
television systems shown have bandwidth limitations which
correspond with the bandwidth limitations depicted in the previous
FIG. 3c. As the bandwidth decreases, the programming options
available to the viewer in the exemplary on-screen menu decreases.
Using this preferred embodiment, the Operations Center 202 is able
to send one identical signal to the satellite 206 that is sent to
all the cable headends. Each cable headend 208 accepts the entire
signal and customizes the signal for the local cable system by
stripping those portions of the Operations Center 202 signal that
are unable to be handled by the local cable system. An alternate
embodiment requires the Operations Center 202 to send different
signals for reception by different capacity cable headends.
[0103] There are several ways in which the cable headend 208 may
strip the unnecessary signal from the Operations Center 202. A
person skilled in the art will derive many methods from the three
examples discussed below. One simple method is for the cable
headend 208 receiver to receive the entire signal and then
manipulate the signal to strip away those unnecessary portions. A
second method is for the signal to be sent in three portions with
each portion having a separate header. The cable headend 208 would
then recognize the headers and only receive those signals in which
the proper header is identified. For the second method, the
Operations Center 202 must divide the signal into three parts and
send a separate header lead before each signal for each part.
[0104] The third and preferred method is for a set of transponders
to be assigned to one priority level and each cable headend 208 to
receive signals from the transponders corresponding to the proper
priority level. For example, if there are three priority levels and
18 transponders, transponders one through nine may be assigned to
priority level one, transponders ten through fourteen priority
level two, and transponders fifteen through eighteen assigned to
priority level three. Thus, a cable headend 208 capable of
operating at priority level two only would only receive signals
from transponders one through nine, and ten through fourteen.
[0105] In addition to dividing the television programming and menus
into parts, the Operations Center 202 of the preferred embodiment
is also capable of dynamically changing the bandwidth allocation
for a particular category of programming. FIG. 3e depicts this
dynamic change in bandwidth allocation from a typical week day
prime time 238 signal to a Saturday afternoon in October 240
(during the college football season). FIG. 3e highlights the fact
that the bandwidth allocated to sports is limited to eight
selections during week day prime time 238 but is increased to
sixteen selections during a Saturday afternoon in October 240. This
dynamic increase in bandwidth allocation allows the system to
accommodate changes in programming occurring on an hourly, daily,
weekly, monthly, seasonal and annual basis.
[0106] In addition to dynamically allocating bandwidth for
programming categories, the Operations Center 202 can also
dynamically change the menu capacities in order to accommodate the
change in programming and bandwidth. For example, on a Saturday
afternoon in October 240, the major menu for sports may include a
separate subcategory for college football. This subcategory would,
in turn, have a separate submenu with a listing of four, six,
eight, or more college football games available for viewing. In
order to accommodate this dynamic menu change, the Operations
Center 202 must add a submenu listing to the major sports menu,
create a new or temporary submenu for college football, and
allocate the necessary menu space on the college football
submenu.
[0107] Once the television programs have been packaged and a
program control information signal is generated to describe the
various categories and programs available, the packaged programs
are then digitized, compressed, and combined with the program
control information signal. Upon the signal's departure from the
Operations Center 202 the breakdown into categories is
insignificant and the signal is treated like any other digitally
compressed signal.
[0108] FIG. 4a shows the basic operations that must occur in order
for the packaged signal to be sent to the satellite 206. External
digital and analog signals must be received from television
programming sources and converted to a standard digital format 242,
defined above for the computer assisted packaging equipment (CAP)
246. Also within the Operations Center 202, stored programs 244
must be accessed using banks of looping tape machines or other
video storage/retrieval devices, either analog or digital, and
converted to a standard digital format 242 prior to use by the CAP
246.
[0109] The programmer/packager utilizing the CAP 246 must input a
variety of information in order to allow the CAP 246 to perform its
function of generating program control information and packaging
programs. Some of the information required by the CAP 246 are the
date, time slots and program categories desired by the television
programmer.
[0110] The CAP 246 system includes one or more CPUs and one or more
programmer/packager consoles. In the preferred embodiment, each
packager console includes one or more CRT screens, a keyboard, a
mouse (or cursor movement), and standard video editing equipment.
In large Operations Centers 202s multiple packager consoles may be
needed for the CAP 246.
[0111] As shown in FIG. 4b, the first step in the operation of the
CAP 246 is selecting the type of programming 248 which will be
packaged. Basically there are 6 broad categories in which most
television programming can be classified: static programming 250,
interactive services 252, pay per view 254, live sports specials
256, mini pays 258, and data services. Static programs are programs
which will show repetitively over a period of time such as a day or
week. Static programs include movies showing repetitively on movie
channels, children's programs, documentaries, news,
entertainment.
[0112] Interactive services includes interactive programs using the
Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI) or other data streams synchronized
with the programming to communicate interactive features (such as
those used in education), and games. Pay per view are programs
which are individually ordered by the subscriber. After ordering,
the subscriber is authorized to access the program for a limited
time, (e.g. three hours, two days, etc.). Live sports specials are
live events usually related to sports which subscribers are
unlikely to watch on taped delay.
[0113] Mini pays are channels to which each set top box may
subscribe. The subscriptions for mini pays 258 may be daily,
weekly, or monthly. An example would be the Science Fiction
channel. Data services are services in which information is
interactively presented to the subscriber using a modem or other
high rate of speed data transfer. Some examples are Prodigy,
services for airline reservations, and TV guide services (e.g. TV
Guide X*PRESSJ, InSightJ, etc.). Data could also include classified
or other forms of advertising.
[0114] After selecting the type of programming, the packager must
identify a pool of programs (within the category) to be packaged.
The next CAP 246 step varies for different program categories. For
the category of live sports, additional program interstitial
elements 262 may be added such as promos and other sports news
before further processing. For the live sports, static, interactive
services 252 and pay per view 254 categories the following CAP 246
step is for one television program to be selected 264. This is
followed by each program individually being assigned dates to be
played or a start date (for continuous play) and start times 266.
Many dates and start times may be assigned to any given program.
The program information for these categories may then be processed
for allocation of transponder space and setting of prices.
[0115] Mini pays and data services require less processing by the
CAP 246. After identifying the mini pays 258, the CAP 246 may
proceed to allocation of transponder space and pricing for the mini
pays 258. Data services in the preferred embodiment generally do
not require allocation of transponder space and generally do not
require price setting. The information for data services 260 may be
directly processed for menu configuration. In alternate embodiments
the data services 260 may be processed through these portions of
the CAP 246 program.
[0116] The CAP 246 then uses an interactive algorithm to allocate
transponder space 268 and set prices 270. The factors weighed by
the algorithm are: 1. buy rates of the program, 2. margin of profit
on the program, 3. length of the program, 4. any contractual
requirement which overrides other factors (such as requirement to
run a specific football game live in its entirety). The information
on buy rates of the program may be obtained from the Central
Statistical and Billing Site or a Regional Statistical and Billing
Site as will be described later. The CAP 246 must consider the
priority levels of programming when allocating transponder space.
Particularly, as in the preferred embodiment, transponders are
assigned to three specific priority levels.
[0117] Following transponder allocation and price setting, the CAP
246 proceeds to menu configuration 272. The positioning of programs
within the menu configuration 272 can have an effect on subscriber
buy rates for the program. Therefore, an algorithm accounting for
either a manually assigned program importance, or a calculated
weight of the program importance, is used to determine each
programs position within the menu scheme. For instance, a popular
program with a high profit margin may be assigned a high weight of
importance and shown in a prominent place in the menu scheme.
Alternatively, a high profit program with sagging sales may be
manually assigned a prominent place in the program schedule to
increase sales.
[0118] After a series of entries by the programmer/packager at the
Operations Center 202, the CAP 246 displays draft menus or
schedules (including priority levels) for programming. The packager
may now manipulate the menus and schedules and make changes as he
feels necessary. After each change, the packager may again display
the menus or schedules and determine if any more changes are
necessary. When the packager is satisfied with the menu
configuration 272 and scheduling of television programs, he may
then instruct the CAP 246 to complete the process.
[0119] After menu configuration 272, the CAP 246 may begin the
process of generating a program control information signal 274. In
order to generate program control information signals which are
specific to a particular cable headend 208 system, the CAP 246
incorporates cable franchise configuration information 276. In the
preferred embodiment, basic cable franchise configuration
information 276 is stored at the Operations Center 202. The cable
franchises upload changes to their specific franchise information
from time to time to the Operations Center 202 for storage.
Preferably a separate CPU handles the management of the cable
franchise information. From the stored cable franchise information,
the CAP 246 generates a cable franchise control information signal
which is unique to each franchise.
[0120] Using the unique cable franchise control information signals
278 and the menu configuration 272 information, the CAP 246
generates the program control information signal 274. The program
control information that is unique to a particular cable franchise
may be identified in various ways such as with a header. With the
header identification, the cable headend 208 may extract the
portions of the program control information signal which it needs.
Now, the CAP 246 may complete its process by electronically
packaging the programs into groupings 280 for the signal
transmission and adding the program control information to the
packaged programs 282 to form a single signal for transmission.
Through manual entries by the packager or by comparing against a
list of programs, the CAP 246 will determine whether the programs
are arriving from external sources 204 or sources internal to the
Operations Center 202.
[0121] Upon completion of the CAP's functions, the Operations
Center 202 or the uplink site compresses 284, multiplexes 286,
amplifies 288 and modulates 290 the signal for satellite
transmission 292. In a basic embodiment, the CAP 246 will also
allow entry of time slots for local avails where no national
programming will occur.
[0122] FIG. 5 is a more detailed flow chart of some of the
functions performed by the CAP 246 after an initial program
schedule has been entered and menu configurations generated. The
flow chart 300 shows six basic functions that are performed by the
CAP 246: (1) editing program schedule for local availability-304
(only for non-standard services, i.e. those services that are not
national cable services); (2) generating program control
information signals 307; (3) processing external programs 310; (4)
processing internal programs 320; (5) processing live feeds 330;
and, (6) packaging of program information 340. In an alternate
embodiment, the CAP 246 is capable of incorporating local programs
and accommodating local availability for local television
stations.
[0123] Following completion of the programming scheduling
(accounting for local availability if necessary) and menu
generation 304, the CAP 246 may perform three tasks simultaneously,
generating program information signals 307, processing external
programs 310 and processing internal programs 320.
[0124] The CAP 246 automatically identifies external programs
needed 312 and identifies which external feed to request the
external program 314. The CAP 246 gathers and receives the external
programming information and converts it to a standard digital
format 316 for use. The CAP 246 also identifies internal programs
322, accesses the internal programs 324, and converts them to a
standard digital format if necessary 326. In addition, the CAP 246
identifies live signal feeds 333 that will be necessary to complete
the packaged programming signal 336. In its final task, the CAP 246
completes the packaging of the programs, combines the packaged
program signal with the program control information signal,
amplifies the signal and sends it out for further processing prior
to uplink.
[0125] In the preferred embodiment, the Operations Center 202 and
uplink or master control site are collocated. However, the
Operations Center 202 and uplink site may be located in different
geographical places. Also, functions and equipment within the
Operations Center 202 may be remotely located. For instance, the
program storage may be at a different site and the programs may be
sent to the CAP 246 via landline.
[0126] In alternate embodiments using multiple Operations Centers,
it is preferred that one Operation Center be designated the Master
Operations Center and all other Operations Centers be Slave
Operations Centers. The Master Operations Center performs the
functions of managing and coordinating the Slave Operations
Centers. Depending on the method in which the Slave Operations
Centers share functions, the Master Operations Center coordination
function may involve synchronization of simultaneous transmissions
from multiple Slave Operations Centers. To perform its functions,
the Master Operations Center may include a system clock for
synchronization.
[0127] An efficient method of dividing tasks among Operations
Centers is to assign specific satellite transponders to each
Operations Center 202 and to assign external program sources 204 to
the nearest Operations Center. Of course this division of resources
may not always be possible. Since programming will be grouped into
priority levels with each priority level likely to be assigned
specific satellite transponders, it is also possible to assign each
Operations Center to a priority level. For example, in a three
priority level system with two Slave Operations Centers and 18
transponders, the Master Operations Center may be assigned priority
level 1 and assigned 9 transponders. Slave Operations Center A may
be assigned priority level 2 and 5 transponders, while Slave
Operations Center B is assigned priority level 3 and 4
transponders. In a multiple Operations Center configuration dynamic
bandwidth allocation and dynamic menu capacity allocation become
more complex and must be coordinated by the Master Operations
Center.
[0128] Similar to multiple Operations Centers, a delivery system
may have multiple satellite uplinks. Preferably each Operations
Center has one or more uplink sites. Each Operations Center
controls the functions of its assigned uplink sites and may assign
one site as a master uplink site.
[0129] The program control information signal generated by the
Operations Center provides data on the scheduling and description
of programs to the network controller 214 or in an alternate
configuration directly to the set top terminal 220 for display to
the subscriber. In the preferred embodiment, the program control
information signal is stored and modified by the network controller
214 and sent to the set top terminal 220 in the form of a set top
terminal control information stream (STTCIS). This configuration is
required to accommodate differences in individual cable systems and
possible differences in set top terminal devices. The set top
terminal 220 integrates either the program control signal or the
set top terminal control information stream together with data
stored in the memory of the set top terminal 220, to generate
on-screen displays for assisting the subscriber in choosing the
programs he wishes to view. (Throughout the description the term
"program control information" is being used to indicate control
information coming from the cable headend 208 to the set top
terminal 220, whether it is sent directly from the Operations
Center, processed by the Network controller 214 and then forwarded
to the set top box (STTCIS), or transmitted over telephone
lines.)
[0130] The types of information that can be sent via the program
control signal include: number of program categories, names of
program categories, what channels are assigned to a specific
category (such as specialty channels), names of channels, names of
programs on each channel, program start times, length of programs,
description of programs, menu assignment for each program, pricing,
whether there is a sample video clip for advertisement for the
program, and any other program, menu or product information.
[0131] The goal of the menu driven program selection system is to
allow the subscriber to choose a program by touring through a
series of menus utilizing a remote control for cursor movement. The
final choice in the series of menus will identify one particular
channel and one time for activation of that channel. Armed with a
channel and activation time the set top terminal 220 can display
the selected program on the television for the viewer. To achieve
this goal a simple embodiment assigns an intelligent alpha-numeric
code to each program. This alpha-numeric code identifies the
category of the program, the menu in which the program should be
displayed, its transmission time(s), and the position on the menu
that the program should be displayed.
[0132] In this simple embodiment, the program control information,
including these menu codes, is sent continuously from the
Operations Center to the network controller 214, and ultimately to
the set top terminal 220. For example, four hours worth of
programming information can be sent via the program control
information signal continuously in the format shown in FIG. 6.
[0133] FIG. 6 shows the basic information that is needed by the set
top terminal 220. The program descriptions shown are coded
abbreviations. For example, C for comedy, N for news, for sports, A
for cartoons, and TX for text. If there is a textual description
for a program, such as a movie, the description may be given
following that program's coded description or may be communicated
following the four hours' worth of programming information. As is
shown in the coded listing, program descriptions for programs
greater than a half hour in length need not be repeated (each half
hour). The video description code informs the set top terminal 220
of whether there is still or live video available to advertise the
program.
[0134] For example, a sporting program may be assigned a code of
B35-010194-1600-3.25-Michigan St. vs. USC. The letter B would
assign the program to category B, sports. The second alpha-numeric
character number 3 would assign the program to the third menu of
the sports category. The third character of the code, number 5,
assigns the program to the fifth program slot on the third menu.
The next six characters, Jan. 1, 1994, represent the date. The
following four characters, 1600 represent the start time which is
followed by the length of the program and the program name. This
entry represents a sports show, a college football game, which will
be aired at 4:00 PM on New Years day 1994.
[0135] In the 12:30 Channel 1 entry of FIG. 6, two menu codes are
shown. By allowing two menu codes, programs that may fit under two
different category descriptions may be shown in both menus to the
subscriber. With this minimal amount of information being
communicated to the set top terminal 220 on a regular basis, the
terminal is able to determine the proper menu location for each
program and the proper time and channel to activate for the
subscriber after his menu selection.
[0136] The program control information signal and STTCIS can be
formatted in a variety of ways and the on-screen menus can be
produced in many different ways. For instance, if the program
control information signal carries no menu format information, the
menu format for creating the menus can be fixed in ROM at the
set-top terminal. This method allows the program control signal to
carry less information but has the least flexibility since the menu
formats can not be changed without physically swapping the ROM
holding the menu format information. In the preferred embodiment,
the menu format information is stored at the set top terminal 220
in temporary memory either in a RAM or EPROM. This configuration
provides the desired flexibility in the menu format while still
limiting the amount of information needed to be communicated via
the program control information signal. New menu format information
would be sent via the program control information signal or the
STTCIS to the set top terminals each time there was a change to a
menu.
[0137] In the simplest embodiment, the menus remain fixed and only
the text changes. Thus, the program control information signal can
be limited to primarily text and a text generator can be employed
in the set top terminal 220. This simple embodiment keeps the cost
of the set top terminal 220 low and limits the bandwidth necessary
for the program control information. Another simple embodiment uses
a separate channel full-time (large bandwidth) just for the menu
information.
[0138] As will be described later, live video signals may be used
in windows of certain menus. These video signals can be sent via
the program control information signal, STTCIS, or can be taken off
channels being transmitted simultaneously with the menu display. If
the video signal is taken off a channel, less information needs to
be sent via the program control information signal. However, this
technique requires that separate decompression hardware be used for
the program control information and the channel carrying the video.
Separate decompressors for the video signals and program
information signal allows for the greatest flexibility in the
system and is therefore the preferred embodiment. A separate
decompressor also assists in assuring that the switch from menus to
television programming is smooth and without any significant time
delay.
[0139] Live video for menus, promos or demos may be sent to the set
top terminal 220 in several ways: a) on a dedicated channel, b) on
a regular program channel and scaled to size, c) sent along with
the program control information signal, etc. However, in the
preferred embodiment, a great deal of short promos or demo video
are sent using a split screen technique on a dedicated channel.
[0140] Using a split screen technique, any number of different
video clips may be sent (e.g. 2, 4, 6, 8). To show the video clip
on a menu, the video must either be scaled and redirected to a
video window on a menu screen or a masking methodology can be used.
Masking involves playing the entire channel of video (all 2, 4, 6,
or 8 split screens) in background and masking the unwanted video
clip portions of the split screen by playing the menu in foreground
and overlaying the unwanted background video. Masking is the least
expensive method because it does not require any special hardware
and it increases video throughput to the set top terminal 220.
However, using the masking technique without any video redirecting
causes each video clip to be located in a different position on the
screen. It also requires the masking to be different for each video
clip and makes consistent format difficult. Scaling and
redirecting-video is generally difficult, expensive and requires
additional hardware.
[0141] In order to limit the amount of bandwidth needed to transmit
the program control information signal, various compression
techniques employed for non-video may be used such as block coding,
contour coding, blob encoding, and run-length encoding. Further,
the program control information signal may be divided into text and
graphics, or video, text and graphics and then recombined at the
set top terminal 220 using a text generator, graphics
decompression, and video decompression as necessary.
[0142] FIG. 7a shows a basic block diagram of a digital compression
set top terminal 220. In some respects, the set top terminal 220 is
similar to other converter boxes currently available and can
include a variety of error detection, decryption 600 and coding
techniques such as anti-taping encoding. The set-top terminal must
also have a tuner 603, digital demodulator 606, and demultiplexers
609, 616 as well as audio equipment 612, 614. Also shown in FIG. 7a
is a remote control interface 626 for receiving and processing
signals from remote control unit 900. A modem 627 is provided for
allowing communication between a microprocessor 602 and the cable
head end. NTSC encoder 625 provides an NTSC video output to be
output as a standard television signal.
[0143] The microprocessor 602 is capable of executing program
instructions stored in memory. These instructions allow a user to
access various menus by making selections on the remote control
900. The various program instructions for accessing menus and
performing other functions are described below.
[0144] The manner in which the video is decompressed and the menus
are generated from the program control signal or STTCIS varies
depending on the specific embodiment of the invention. However, at
a minimum, one video decompressor capable of decompressing one
video signal must be used. Basic menu format information may be
stored in a graphics memory comprising ROM, non-volatile RAM,
EPROM, and/or EEPROM 620. Video decompressors 618 and 622 may be
used if the video is compressed, and additional equipment to
generate menus may be included. In one embodiment, a separate
decompressor 622 is used to process the program control information
signal and a video combiner 624 incorporates video and menu graphic
information. In the preferred embodiment, the program signal is
sent with three primary parts, compressed video (or video location
information), compressed graphics, and text. After the program
signal is demultiplexed into its component parts, a video
decompressor, a graphic decompressor, a text generator and a
combiner are used to assist in creating the menus.
[0145] FIG. 7b shows a basic block diagram of an alternative
digital compression set top terminal 220. The same components shown
in FIG. 7a are repeated in FIG. 7b, and given the same reference
number (e.g., tuner 603, modem 617, NTSC encoder 625, etc.). FIG.
7b also shows the addition of a smart card interface 617 to allow
additional features to be included on a smart card insertable into
the smart card interface 617. Error correction circuitry 607 is
also shown receiving the demodulated signal, prior to
demultiplexing the signal. Memory associated with the
microprocessor 602, the demultiplexer 609, the decryptor 600, and
the video decompressor 618 is shown in FIG. 7b.
[0146] Box 700 in FIG. 7b shows the elements of an upgrade module
which is described below with respect to FIGS. 9a and 9b. The
remaining circuitry in FIG. 7b shows a basic decompression box 720,
also described below.
[0147] The circuitry in box 700 includes a video, graphics and text
demultiplexer 616, a text and graphics video plane combiner 624, a
graphic decompressor 622 and a graphics memory 620. Graphics in
memory 620 is preferably run-length compressed, however other
methods of compressing graphics may be used as is known by those
skilled in the art.
[0148] The generated menus and video are combined in the combiner
624 and output to an anti-taping encoder 619. Any method of
anti-tapping encoding known by those skilled in the art may be used
with the present invention.
[0149] FIGS. 8a and 8b show front and back views respectively for
the preferred embodiment of the set top terminal 220. The front
panel of the set top terminal 220 as shown in FIG. 8a includes an
infrared sensor 630 and a series of LED displays 640. These LED
displays 640 preferably indicate with an icon or a letter (e.g.
A-K) the major menu currently selected by the set top terminal 220.
This visual display will remain lit while the subscriber is
watching (or listening to) programming within a major menu. The
LEDs 640 of the preferred embodiment also show the channels
selected directly by a user, or menu channel selections which range
from 1 to 50.
[0150] LEDs 640 are preferably provided to indicate a decompression
error, a processing error, or other error. Text messages may
alternatively be provided to more clearly indicate particular
errors to servicemen or subscribers. These error indications aid in
repairing or correcting any such errors in the set top terminal 220
or assist in programming the set top terminal 220. Further displays
may include current channel, time, volume level, sleep time,
parental lock (security), account balance, use of a hardware
upgrade, second channel being recorded by VCR, use of the Level D
music hardware upgrade in a separate room, and any other displays
useful to a subscriber to indicate the current status of the set
top terminal 220.
[0151] The LED's 640 may also provide an indication of the digital
audio channel currently tuned. With this display feature,
subscribers may use the digital audio feature without activating
the television screen. The source of a signal and output selected
(e.g., a subscriber's separate audio system, a VCR, etc.) may be
displayed. Although LED's are preferred, the set top terminal 220
may also use a CRT, LCD's, or other display technology.
[0152] On the right front half of the set top terminal 220 there is
a flapped opening 635 into a cavity that allows the insertion of a
magnetic cartridge (or similar portable storage device, including
optical disk, ROM, EPROM, etc.). This cartridge opening 635 allows
the set top terminal 220 to be upgraded or reprogrammed locally
with the use of a magnetic tape cartridge. Game cartridges may also
be accepted through a similar flapped opening allowing the
subscriber to play video games using the set top terminal 220.
[0153] On the top or cover of the set top terminal 220 are located
pushbutton controls 645. In the preferred embodiment these
pushbutton controls 645 duplicate the two-part alpha-iconic remote
control that will be described later. Any function that can be
performed on the remote may also be performed at the set top
terminal 220 using the duplicative pushbutton controls 645.
[0154] FIG. 8b provides a rear view of one embodiment of the set
top terminal 220 including the input/output equipment of the
terminal. Moving from left to right there are a pair of output
terminals 650, a pair of input terminals 652, a pair of
stereo/audio output terminals 654, a satellite dish input port 656,
a telephone jack 658 and an RS422 port 660. Further to the right
there is an upgrade port 662 and a cover plate 664 held in place by
a series of sheet metal screws.
[0155] The set top terminal 220 has two outputs 650, one for a
television and one for a VCR. Control signals may be transmitted
through the VCR output to allow the VCR to be automatically
controlled by the set top terminal 220. Certain program may be
selected by a subscriber from menus, and the VCR will be
automatically activated to record the selected program.
[0156] The set top terminal 220 is equipped to handle one or two
cable inputs by way of inputs 652 for incoming signals. In
addition, a phone jack 658 and RS242 or 422 port 660 are provided
for maintenance, trouble shooting, reprogramming and additional
customer features. In alternate embodiments, the telephone jack 658
may be used as the primary mode of communication between the cable
headend 208 and the set top terminal 220. This connection is
possible through the local telephone companies, cellular telephone
companies or personal communications networks (PCN).
[0157] In an alternative configuration, in areas without cable
services where subscribers use backyard satellite systems (TV RO)
to receive packaged television services, the set top terminal 220
will include the appropriate hardware to allow connection to the
satellite 206 reception equipment through port 656. In this
configuration, the menu system within the set top terminal 220 will
be programmed directly from the operations center. Additionally, an
upstream communication mechanism must be in place at the
subscriber's home (i.e. modem) to communicate information to the
operations center.
[0158] In order to provide the greatest flexibility possible and
prevent the set top terminal 220 from becoming outdated during the
terminal's useful life, an additional electronic card slot or
expansion slot has been built into the preferred embodiment. This
expansion slot is covered by the metal plate cover 664 shown in
FIG. 8b. It is anticipated that additional memory or capabilities
may be needed for certain customer features and also to update the
system as the cable delivery system's capabilities increase. The
expansion slot provides an easy method to upgrade the terminal
hardware.
[0159] In the preferred embodiment, the set top terminal 220
includes a hardware upgrade port 662 as shown in FIG. 8b, in
addition to the expansion slots behind plate 664. The hardware
upgrade port 662 should accommodate at least a four-wire connection
for: (1) error corrected, decrypted data output of the set top
terminal 220, (2) control interface, (3) decompressed video output
of set top terminal 220, and (4) video input port. In the preferred
embodiment multiple wires are used to perform each of the four
functions. The four sets of wires are combined in a single cable
with a single multipin connector. Port 662 may also be used to
attach various hardware upgrades below to a set top terminal
220.
[0160] In the preferred embodiment, multipin connections may be
used for the multiwire cable. The multipin connection 662 may range
from DB9 to DB25. A SCSI, or small computer systems interface, port
may also be provided. Alternatively, four or more ports may be
provided instead of the single port depicted.
[0161] The preferred embodiment has four hardware upgrades
available for a set top terminal 220: a Level B interactive unit, a
Level C interactive unit with compact disc capability, a Level D
digital radio tuner for separate room use, and a Level E
information download unit. Each of these upgrades is connected to
the set top terminal 220 unit via the same upgrade port 662
described earlier. The same four wires in a single cable described
earlier may be used.
[0162] The Level B interactive unit will allow the user access to
online data base services for applications such as home shopping,
airline reservations, news, financial services, classified
advertising, home banking, and interactive teletext services. For
example, with this upgrade, a user will be able to reserve plane
tickets or buy consumer electronics. The primary feature of this
upgrade unit is that it allows actual transactions to occur
requiring two way communications via modem with outside services.
This added two way communications capability may be with the cable
headend 208. Additionally, this two way communications may occur
over cellular or PCN.
[0163] The Level C interactive unit will employ a high volume local
storage capacity, including compact disc or other random access
digital data formats. This unit will allow use of interactive
multi-media applications. For example, computer games, multi-media
educational software, encyclopedias, other reference volumes (e.g.
Shakespeare library), etc. In the preferred embodiment, many of
these applications will interact with live programming providing
additional information and interactivity to the basic program feed.
For example, a viewer watching a show set in a foreign country may
be able to retrieve additional information, maps, economic data,
etc. about that country that are stored on the compact disc. In the
level C applications, the upgrade hardware may closely monitor the
television broadcast via additional data channels (e.g. vertical
blanking interval, or other digital data encoded within live video)
providing context sensitive interactivity.
[0164] The Level D hardware upgrade, digital radio tuner, will
allow the subscriber separate access to the digital radio channels
while other programming (not necessarily radio) is being viewed on
the television. Typically this upgrade would be used for digital
radio usage in a separate room from that of the television. The
upgrade has a separate tuner, decompressor, and visual display. In
the preferred embodiment a second remote control (scaled down
version) is provided to access the audio system.
[0165] The Level E hardware upgrade allows the subscriber to
download large volumes of information from the operations center or
cable headend 208. The Level E hardware upgrade will enable
subscribers to download data such as books to local storage.
Primarily the Level E hardware upgrade is additional local storage
via hard disk, floppy, optical disk, magnetic cartridge etc.
Preferably a small portable reader called "everyBookJ" is also
provided with the upgrade to enable downloaded text to be read
without the use of a TV.
[0166] The downloadable information may be text or video supplied
by the operations center or cable headend 208. With this upgrade,
books may be downloaded and read anywhere with the portable reader.
Using this upgrade video may be downloaded and stored in compressed
form for later decompression. The video would be decompressed only
at the time of viewing. Important text that the public desires
immediate access may made available through this system. Text such
as the President's speech, a new law, or a recent abortion decision
rendered by the Supreme Court may be made immediately
available.
[0167] Using a more sophisticated port, especially the SCSI port,
multiple hardware upgrade units may be connected, or
"daisy-chained" together, to operate simultaneously.
[0168] FIG. 9a shows sets of wires in a single cable connecting an
upgrade module 700 and the simple decompression box 720 through a
port similar to the hardware upgrade port 662. The simple
decompression box 720 preferably is an industry standard
decompression box capable of communicating with an upgrade module
to enhance functionality. For example, a microprocessor in the
simple decompression box 720 will be able to communicate with a
microprocessor in an upgrade module 700.
[0169] Thus, as shown in FIG. 9a, if this type of connection is
built into a simple decompression box that does not have the full
functionality of the set top terminal 220, an upgrade module unit
700 may be connected providing the simple decompression box 720
with the full functionality of a set top terminal 220. Subscribers
who have purchased simple decompression boxes 720 may be given all
the functions of a set top terminal 220 inexpensively.
[0170] In the preferred embodiment, multipin connections may be
used for a multiwire cable connecting decompression box 720 with
the upgrade module 700. The multipin connection may range from DB9
to DB25. A SCSI, or small computer systems interface, port may also
be provided. Alternatively, four or more ports may be provided
instead of the single port depicted.
[0171] The digital data set of output wires of the simple
decompression box 720 will preferably output error corrected and
decrypted data to the upgrade set top terminal 700. The second set
of wires, the interface connection, allows the microprocessor in
the upgrade module 700 to communicate to the microprocessor of the
simple decompression box 720. In this manner, the video circuitry
of the upgrade module 700 and the simple decompression box 720 may
be synchronized. The third set of wires, the decompressed video
output, can provide the upgrade module 700 with a decompressed
video signal to manipulate. The fourth set of wires, video input
set, allows the simple decompression box 720 to accept a video
signal that is a combined text, graphics, and video signal.
[0172] Upgrade module 700 preferably includes at least the
following circuitry: a video, graphics and text demultiplexer; a
text and graphics video plane combiner; a run-length graphics
decompressor; and, a run-length compressed graphics memory
(non-volatile RAM, ROM, EPROM, or EEPROM). By means of
communications through the multi wire connection between upgrade
modules 700, and simple decompression box 720, compressed video and
control signals may be demultiplexed by the demultiplexer within
upgrade module 700. The run-length graphics decompressor, by
communicating with the run-length compressed graphics RAM, permits
decompression of the input compressed video signal. The text and
graphics video plane combiner in upgrade module 700 allows the
demultiplexed and decompressed signal to be output, through simple
decompression box 720, to a subscriber's television with both video
and overlay menus with text.
[0173] FIG. 9a shows the CATV input 722, the video input 724, and
the video and audio outputs 726, 728, as part of simple
decompression box 720. This is the preferred embodiment because
this will reduce the component cost of upgrade module 700. Upgrade
module 700 could simply be a cartridge insertable into simple
decompression box 720. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 9b, the CATV
input 722, the video input 724 and the video and audio outputs 726,
728 may be included as part of upgrade module 700.
[0174] The electronics of the set top terminal 220 must receive
signals from the Cable headend 208 or Operations Center and
separate the program control information from the packaged
programs. After separation of the program control information, this
signal may be used to generate program menus allowing the user to
select specific television programs from within the packaged
programs. After selection of a particular program, the set top
terminal 220 will demultiplex and extract a single channel signal
then decompress the appropriate channel signal to allow the user to
watch his selected program. Although the set top terminal 220 can
be equipped to decompress all the program signals, this adds
unnecessary cost since the subscriber will view one channel at a
time. Upon the occurrence of an error in this selection and
decompression procedure, the set top terminal 220 LED display will
warn the subscriber of an error.
[0175] During the normal functioning of the set top terminal 220
the LED display can be customized by the user to display the time,
the program channel, VCR activation or other pertinent information.
Although the set top terminals may be operated using the keyboards
located on top of the set top terminal 220 box, it is expected that
most subscribers will use the remote control.
[0176] Although the preferred embodiment decompresses one channel
at a time for the viewer, users who desire to use the
picture-on-picture capability of their televisions can be provided
with an upgrade to the set top terminal 22Q allowing two channels
to be tuned and decompressed at any given time. Once two signals
are available to the television the picture-on-picture capability
may be utilized to its fullest potential. With the
picture-on-picture capability available in the set top terminal
220, a special television is not required for picture-on-picture
functionality.
[0177] In the preferred embodiment all of the customer features
available on the set top terminal 220 will be controllable via
on-screen menu displays. In this manner, the subscriber using a
cursor may easily customize the programming of his set top terminal
220. The basic programming of each set top terminal 220 will be
located on ROM within the set top terminal 220. Random access
memory, the magnetic cartridge capability, and the extension card
slot will each allow upgrades and changes to be easily made to the
set top terminal 220.
[0178] In the preferred embodiment, the set top terminal 220 will
include features that are now being adopted in the industry such as
parental controls and locks, electronic diagnostics and error
detection, mute, on-screen volume control, sleep timer, recall of
last selection, etc. Each of these features has a corresponding
menu that allows on-screen customizing and activation of the
feature. The set top terminal 220 also includes a sophisticated
favorite channel list and favorite program list.
[0179] In addition to all the features that the set top terminals
supports with its current internal programming, additional features
may be added or existing features upgraded through remote
reprogramming of the set top terminal 220. Utilizing the resident
operating system on the ROM, the cable head end is able to
reprogram the random access memory of the set top terminal 220.
With this capability the cable head end can remotely upgrade
software on the set top terminals.
[0180] In the preferred embodiment, the cable head end will
reprogram the menu format from time to time based upon special
events or programming needs, such as Olympic telecasts,
presidential elections, etc. This reprogramming will occur by using
the program control information channel and sending the appropriate
signals over this channel. In an alternative embodiment, one
channel is dedicated for the special programming needs. When
reprogramming is to occur, the cable head end will send an
interruption sequence on the program control information channel
that informs the set top terminal 220 that reprogramming
information is to follow. Significant reprogramming of the set top
terminals will occur infrequently. However, the changing of color
or formats on menus occur more often. In alternative embodiments,
color changes to menus may be accomplished via the program control
information itself and does not require reprogramming from the
cable head end.
[0181] In the preferred embodiment, the basic building blocks or
templates of the on-screen menu displays will be stored on graphics
memory consisting of no-volatile RAM, ROM, EPROM, or preferably,
EEPROM, as shown as 620 in FIG. 10. With the information from this
graphics memory 620, the microprocessor 602, graphics decompressor
622, text generator 621 (if necessary), and video combiner 624 will
build a menu screen. The memory files of the graphics memory or
EEPROM 620 are preferably categorized into three categories,
background graphics 800, logo graphics 820, and menu and display
graphics 850.
[0182] A background graphics file 800 will store menu backgrounds
such as: universal main menu backgrounds 804, universal submenu
backgrounds 808, promo backgrounds 812 and custom menu formats 816.
A logo graphics file 820 will store any necessary logos such as:
Your Choice TV logos 824, Network logo files 828, cable system logo
files 832, studio logo files 836, and graphic elements file 840. A
menu display and cursor graphics file 850 will store menu display
blocks 854 and cursor highlight overlays 858 as well as any other
miscellaneous files needed to build the menus.
[0183] Using this method of storing menus, the menus can be changed
by reprogramming the graphics memory 620 of the set top terminal
220. To revise the entire design of displayed menus, the network
controller 214 or operations center instructs the EEPROM 620 to be
erased and reprogrammed with new menu templates. To change one menu
format or logo, the network controller 214 or operations center
instructs just the one location in memory to be erased and
rewritten. Obviously, this menu reprogramming can be done locally
(at the set top terminal 220) by a servicemen.
[0184] As shown in FIG. 10a, each memory subfile is further divided
into various memory blocks. For example, the background graphics
file 800 contains the universal main menu backgrounds 804. The
universal main menu backgrounds memory 804 includes memory units
UM1, UM2 and UM3, as shown in FIG. 10a. Similarly, the logo
graphics file 820 and menu display and curser graphics file 850
further contain within those subfile individual memory blocks (for
example, studio logo file 836 has memory block SL1; menu display
blocks 854 has memory menu display block MD1).
[0185] FIG. 10b shows the hierarchical storage of text transmitted
from the cable head end as STTSCIS. Although text may be
continuously transmitted with the video signals to set top
terminals 220, text may also be transmitted intermittently. In such
a case, the text is stored in the set top terminal. Preferably, the
text is transmitted and stored in a compressed format using known
techniques. Additionally, the text is preferably stored in graphic
memory 620 within set top terminal 220.
[0186] Depending upon the use of the text, it will be stored in one
of three portions of memory. Information sent with the text will
either direct the text to a particular portion of memory, or
include information as to the priority of text. The microprocessor
602 may then direct the text to the appropriate memory location for
storage.
[0187] If the text is to be used frequently and over a long period
of time, a long term storage 875 will be used. If the text will be
used for a shorter period of time (for example, a month), the text
will be directed to an intermediate storage area 877. If the text
is to be used almost immediately, or for a short period of time
(for example, within a few days) the text is directed to a short
term storage area 879. Microprocessor 602 locates the appropriate
text required for a particular menu and retrieves it from the
appropriate portion of memory 620. The text is output from the
graphics memory 620 to the text generator 621. Text generated from
the text generator 621 is thereafter directed to text/graphics
combiner 624.
[0188] FIG. 10c shows the steps performed by the microprocessor 602
for creating a menu based upon a series of overlay screens. These
instructions are stored in memory within the set top terminal 220.
Alternatively, these instructions or routines are transmitted from
the operations center 202 to be stored in memory within the
individual set top terminals 220.
[0189] Initially, microprocessor 602 instructs tuner 603 to select
a channel. The channel is decompressed, and error corrected and
decrypted, if necessary. If the video is to be reduced in size, so
as to be placed within a video window 1556, or is a split screen
video window which must be enlarged, the video is scaled to the
appropriate size. Additionally, the video may be required to be
redirected to a portion of the television screen. This is done by
creating a series of offsets for each pixel location of the
video.
[0190] Graphics must also be used to create a menu in most
instances. As is shown in block 882, the microprocessor 602 must
fetch a background file, fetch a logo file and fetch a menu display
and cursor file in most instances. Each of these files must be
decompressed. Following decompression, the file is sent to video
combiner 886.
[0191] Similarly, microprocessor 602 must fetch text, as shown in
block 884. Depending upon the memory location of the text,
microprocessor 602 will fetch the text for long-term,
intermediate-term, or short-term storage, as described above. Based
upon this memory retrieval, the text is generated and sent to video
combiner 886. Video combiner 886 combines the video (if any) with
as many screens of a decompressed graphics as are necessary, and
any text. The image or portions of the image are stored in combiner
886 until all overlays are received by combiner 886. Thereafter,
the entire image is sent, under direction of another routine, to be
displayed on the television screen, as represented by display block
888.
[0192] FIG. 10d is a full chart of programming instructions
performed by microprocessor 602 for sequencing menus. Upon powerup
of the set top terminal 220, start up routine 890 is performed. Any
error checking is thereafter performed (891), and introductory menu
subroutine 892 is performed. This subroutine displays the
introductory menu and the microprocessor thereafter awaits for an
input 893.
[0193] If the subscriber inputs a channel selection 894, video for
the particular channel is decompressed 895. Otherwise, the
microprocessor performs another routine 896 to display the home
menu 897.
[0194] At the home menu portion of the sequence of routines, a
subscriber may select one of the major menus, thus starting the
sequence of displays represented by routine block 898.
Alternatively, a subscriber may go directly to a major menu by
depressing a menu select button on remote 900 and the
microprocessor will execute another the go to submenu subroutine
896.
[0195] Once a subscriber has selected a major menu, the appropriate
subroutines are executed by the microprocessor using a series of
instructions shown in block 898. After each display, microprocessor
602 awaits for a selection by the subscriber, shown as block 899.
These blocks could be also represented as decision blocks.
[0196] After displaying the major menu, and receiving a selection
by the user, a particular submenu for a subcategory is displayed,
if such a menu exists. Again, microprocessor 602 waits for an input
from the subscriber after executing a routine to display a program
listing submenu. Thereafter, after receiving an input,
microprocessor 602 performs the next routine for displaying a
program description submenu. Thereafter, if a particular selection
requires a confirmation menu, that subroutine is executed and the
appropriate menu displayed. Thereafter, the selected video is
decompressed, and displayed on the television screen. If there are
any display overlay menus or hidden menus, the proper subroutine is
executed by microprocessor 602 and these menus are displayed.
[0197] At any time during the selection of menus in major menu
block 898, the subscriber may also depress another major menu
button to move into a second column of process instructions
(represented by major menu 2, major menu 3, etc. columns). Thus, a
subscriber may move from major menu to major menu. Additionally, a
subscriber may depress a home menu button on remote 900 to return
to the home menu at any time.
[0198] The various subroutines executed by microprocessor 602 allow
a subscriber to navigate through the various menus of the present
invention. A subscriber may sequence back through menus or return
to the home menu with a one-touch return of the home menu button on
remote 900. All of these functions help to add to the system's user
friendliness.
[0199] As shown in FIGS. 11a and 11b, a two-section remote control
is shown. To reduce costs and make the set top terminal 220 as user
friendly as possible, a standard television remote control 860 is
augmented by adding a new section 862 that provides the additional
digital menu access and ordering functions. FIG. 11a depicts the
addition of menu access and cursor movement control to a Gerald RC
650 Remote Control. The cursor movement and function buttons
required for the set top terminal's operation may be added to any
standard remote control format allowing the user to feel more at
home with the new remote control. FIG. 11b shows the two section
remote control combined in a single unit 864.
[0200] The remote control 864 has an ordering button 866, four-way
cursor movement, and a "go" button 868, and menu access buttons
870. The remote operates using infrared with the signals being
received by the infrared sensor on the front of the set top
terminal 220.
[0201] In the simplest embodiment the remote may be built with only
cursor movement and a go button. In more sophisticated embodiments
the remote control may be provided with buttons that are
programmable to perform specific functions for a series of entries.
An intelligent or smart remote would increase both the cost and
capability of the set top terminal 220 system. Using this augmented
remote control the subscriber can navigate the program menu system
of the set top terminal 220.
[0202] FIGS. 12a and 12b show an alternative and preferred
embodiment of the remote control for use in the present invention.
The standard television receiver remote control switches or buttons
920 are again separated from the menu accessing ordering function
buttons 950. The standard television receiver remote control
buttons 920 include volume control, channel select, power and
signal source buttons. The menu buttons 950 include cursor movement
and select, menu select, and pay television buttons. However, the
standard buttons 920 are separated from the menu access and
ordering buttons 950 in the longitudinal direction of the remote,
as opposed to the width-wise separation, shown in FIG. 11a.
Additionally, the color of the buttons or the surrounding
background may differ between the standard television remote
control buttons 920 and the menu buttons 950 to visually
differentiate between these two groups of buttons.
[0203] The width and depth of the remote control unit 900 are
considerably less than the length to allow the remote control unit
900 to fit easily within a user's palm. The remote control unit 900
in preferably has the center of mass balanced substantially near
the longitudinal middle. This allows a user's thumb to naturally be
placed in substantially the middle portion of the remote control
unit 900, when it is picked up by a user.
[0204] Since the center of mass of the remote control unit 900 is
placed substantially near the longitudinal middle of the remote
900, thereby having a user's thumb naturally fall in this same
center region, the standard remote 920 and menu access 950 switches
or buttons most frequently accessed and depressed by a user are
placed within easy reach of the user's thumb. Channel and volume
increment and decrement buttons 910 are placed near this center of
mass and longitudinal center line. The channel buttons 910 are
preferably beveled in opposing directions to allow a user to feel
for and press a desired button without looking down at remote 900.
Similarly, the volume buttons 910 are preferably beveled in
opposing directions for the same reason.
[0205] Additionally, the channel buttons 910 could have a surface
texture different from those of the volume buttons 910 to allow
even easier differentiation between channel and volume buttons 910.
For example, the volume buttons could have a rough surface texture,
while the channel buttons could have a smooth surface texture.
[0206] Also placed in the longitudinal center, within easy reach of
a user's thumb, are cursor movement buttons 970 and "go" button
975. The "go" button 975 selects an option corresponding to the
placement of the cursor. As opposed to buttons, a joystick may be
used with a selection on the stick, or a trackball, depressible for
selecting a desired choice. The cursor buttons 970 are placed
ninety degrees apart, with the "go" button 975 placed within the
center of the cursor movement buttons 970, as shown in FIG. 12b.
The cursor movement buttons 970 are preferably beveled inwardly
toward the "go" button 975. The "go" button 975 is recessed below
the level of the cursor movement buttons 970 so that it is not
accidentally pressed while depressing the cursor movement buttons
970. In addition to the beveling on the cursor movement buttons
970, they may also have a surface texture to allow a user to feel
for and select the appropriate button without looking down at the
remote 900. Directional arrows could be raised or recessed on the
surface of the cursor movement buttons 970 for this purpose.
[0207] Menu select buttons 960 are placed near buttons 970 as shown
in FIG. 12b. Menu select buttons 960 are preferably the largest
buttons on remote 900. Menu select buttons 960 preferably have
icons or other graphics imprinted on their top surface or adjacent
to the corresponding button. For example, a button for the sports
major menu may contain a baseball icon. The icons represent the
programming available on the particular major menu selected by the
menu select buttons 960. The icons may also be raised above the
level of the menu select buttons to provide a textured surface.
This would allow a user to select an appropriate menu-button 960 by
feel, without looking at the remote control unit 900. The icons
would require substantial differences in texture, while still
providing a meaningful graphic related to the associated menu.
[0208] As shown in FIGS. 12a and 12b, labels and icons are provided
for the following major menus: movies, sports, children's
programming, documentary/news, entertainment, magazines,
programming guide, HDTV (high definition television), interactive
TV, music, and an additional button for further programming. Menu
select buttons 960 may also be labeled A through J for the above
programs, with the last button for all additional major menus
labeled K-Z.
[0209] The layout of the user select buttons for the remote 900
have been designed to allow a user to select an appropriate button
without viewing the remote by using the layout of buttons shown in
FIGS. 12a and 12b, in conjunction with textured or beveled buttons.
With this "eye-off-of-the-remote" construction, most of the
frequently used buttons may be located by the sense of touch alone.
However, to aid selection of an appropriate button visually,
certain buttons may have different colors. For example, the menu
select buttons 960 may all be of a color different from the rest of
the buttons on the remote 900. Additionally, the colors should be
selected to provide for easy location and identification by a user.
For example, if the icons are printed in black ink, yellow menu
select buttons 960 are preferred, because yellow would provide the
greatest visual contrast with the black ink.
[0210] Although remote 900 is described with a variety of channel
selection buttons, nearly all buttons from a standard remote
control (section 920 buttons) could be eliminated. The present
invention would allow a subscriber to use a remote control
containing only menu select buttons and/or cursor movement and
select buttons.
[0211] The power button 924 and "go" button 975 preferably have a
separate color from the other buttons on the remote 900. The power
button 924 is preferably a separate color because this button is
used infrequently. The power button is placed out of a user's
thumb's reach so it is not accidentally depressed. The power button
924 should be distinguished from the other buttons because a
television viewer must locate this button first before viewing any
programming. Similarly, the "go" button 975 is used often because
it provides the means for a user to select options, and thus should
be easily distinguished from the other buttons.
[0212] Pay television buttons 980 may also be assigned a color
different from the other buttons on the remote 900. By making the
pay television buttons 980 a different color, it would help a user
to avoid selecting an undesired pay television program.
[0213] As used herein, "button" is contemplated to include all
manner of switches or touch sensitive circuitry to activate a
particular function in the remote control unit 900. Additionally,
although the remote control unit 900 communicates with the set-top
box by means of infrared transmission, other forms of communication
are contemplated, including ultrasound, radio frequency and other
electromagnetic frequency communication.
[0214] FIG. 13 shows the basic structure of the program menu
system. Although the term "menus" has been used above, the menus
could also be seen as defining zones or categories of programming.
The first series of menus, Introductory menu 1000, Home menu 1010,
Major Menus 1020, and Submenus 1050 execute subscriber program
selection inputs. The During program menus 1200 provide a
subscriber with additional features or options after a program has
been selected and shown. There are two primary types of During
program menus 1200, Hidden Menus 1380 and Program Overlay Menus.
Both are described in the following text and figures. The menu
sequence and each menu structure has been particularly program
designed using the "eye-off-the-remote" design concept. A
subscriber can easily navigate through the menu system with the
cursor movement and "go" buttons 970, 975. Since the subscriber
never needs to take his eye off the television screen, the cable
operator is likely to have the subscriber's complete attention.
[0215] The introductory menu screen 1000 automatically appears upon
power-up and initialization of the set top terminal 220. The
introductory menu screen 1000 welcomes the user to the cable system
and provides important announcements or messages. In addition, the
introductory menu 1000 can be used to inform the subscriber if he
has a personal or group message that has been sent to his set top
terminal 220 by the cable headend. The subscriber may then access
the personal or group message with an appropriate key entry while
viewing the introductory menu 1000. Since the introductory menu
1000 must be viewed by each subscriber, it also provides an
opportunity for the cable provider to run advertisements.
[0216] Following the introductory menu screen 1000 the subscriber
will normally be advanced to the home menu screen 1010. The home
menu 1010 is the basic menu that the subscriber will return to make
his first level of viewing decisions. From the home menu 1010, the
subscriber is able to access all television programming options.
Some programming options may be accessed through cursor movement on
the screen, others directly by a button selection on the remote
control 900, or both, on-screen selection and remote control 900
direct access.
[0217] In the normal progression through the menu screens, the
subscriber will be forwarded to a major menu screen 1020 that
correlates to his direct remote control 900 selection or selection
from the home menu screen 1010. The selections on the home menu
1010 are for large categories of programming options and therefore
the major menu 1020 allows the subscriber to further refine his
search for the television program of his choice.
[0218] Following the major menu 1020 the subscriber will navigate
through one or more submenu screens 1050 from which he will choose
one particular program for viewing. For most programming selections
the user will proceed from the home menu 1010 to a major menu 1020
and then to one or more submenus 1050. However, for certain
programming options or functions of the set top terminal 220 the
user may skip one or more menus in the sequence. For example, in
the preferred embodiment the subscriber may directly access a major
menu 1020 by pressing a single icon button. In an alternative
embodiment, the introductory menu 1000 will provide the user with
the capability of directly accessing information on his cable
television account without proceeding through a series of
menus.
[0219] The series of menus shown in FIG. 13 is the normal or
standard format for a variety of alternative embodiments to the
present invention. An introductory screen upon power up that
contains important messages, followed by a home menu 1010 with
major programming categories is the basis upon which many
alternative embodiments of the menu driven selection process can be
built.
[0220] Skipping a sequence or level of the menu structure is
possible and perhaps desired in certain instances. In simple
alternate embodiments it is possible to combine the home menu 1010
and introductory menu 1000 into one menu that performs both
functions. It will be obvious to one skilled in the art that the
specific functions of the Home menu 1010 and Introductory menu 1000
may be exchanged or shared in a number of ways. It is also possible
to allow a user to skip directly from the introductory menu 1000 to
a submenu 1050. This can be accomplished most easily with a
separate direct access remote control 900 button. Generally, a
subscriber will access a television program through execution of a
submenu 1050.
[0221] The During program menus 1200 are enacted by the set top
terminal 220 only after the subscriber has selected a television
program. These menus provide the subscriber with additional
functionality and/or additional information while he is viewing a
selected program. The During program menus 1200 sequence can be
further subdivided into at least two types of menus, Hidden Menus
1380 and Program Overlay Menus 1390.
[0222] To avoid disturbing a subscriber during viewing of a
program, the Hidden Menus 1380 are not shown to the subscriber but
instead "reside" at the set top terminal 220 microprocessor. The
Hidden Menus 1380 do not effect the selected program audio. The
microprocessor awaits a button entry either from the remote 900 or
set top terminal 220 buttons before executing or displaying any
Hidden Menu options. The Hidden Menus 1380 provide the subscriber
with additional functions such as entering an interactive mode or
escaping from a selected program.
[0223] Program Overlay Menus 1390 are similar to Hidden Menus 1380
in that they occur during a program. However, the Program Overlay
Menus 1390 are overlayed onto portions of the television screen and
not hidden. The Program Overlay Menus 1390 allow the subscriber to
continue to watch the selected television program with audio but
place additional information on portions of the television screen.
Most overlays cover small portions of the screen allowing the
subscriber to continue to comfortably view his program selection.
Other Overlays which are by their nature more important than the
program being viewed will overlay onto greater portions of the
screen. In the preferred embodiment, some Program Overlay Menus
1390 reduce or scale down the entire programs video screen and
redirect the video to a portion of the screen.
[0224] All menu entries may be made either from buttons available
on the top cover of the set top terminal 220 or from the remote
900.
[0225] FIG. 14a shows the preferred embodiment for subscriber
selection of television programming. FIG. 14b shows additional
major menu 1020 categories, 1042, 1044, 1046, 1048, which may be
used with the invention. Again, the introductory menu 1000 followed
by the home menu 1010 is the preferred sequence of on-screen
displays. In the preferred embodiment shown in 14a, the home menu
1010 provides a choice of ten major menus 1022, 1024, 1026, 1028,
1030, 1032, 1034, 1036, 1038, 1040. Upon selection of a major menu
1020 category from the home menu 1010, the program proceeds to a
major menu 1020 offering further viewer selections. Each major menu
1020 is customized to target the expected viewership. Depending on
the number of available program choices the major menus 1020 either
breakdown the major category into sub-categories or provide the
subscriber with access to further information on a particular
program.
[0226] For example, the major menu 1020 for children's programming
provides a list of subcategories 1052 from which the subscriber
selects. Upon selection of a subcategory a submenu 1054, 1056
listing program choices within that sub-category is shown to the
subscriber. Upon selection of a particular programming choice
within the first submenu 1050, the subscriber is then provided with
a second submenu 1058 describing the program that the subscriber
has selected. From this menu, the subscriber may now confirm his
program choice and receive a confirmation submenu 1060 from the set
top terminal 220 software.
[0227] Since the system utilizes digital signals in compressed
format, High Definition Television programming can also be
accommodated through the menu system. In addition, since the set
top terminal 220 has two way communication with the cable headend,
interactive television programming is possible, with return signals
generated by the set top terminal 220. Similarly, the system can
support "movies on demand" where a subscriber communicates through
the set top terminal 220 with an automated facility to order movies
stored at the facility.
[0228] Using this on-screen menu approach to program selection,
there is nearly an unlimited number of menus that can be shown to
the subscriber. The memory capability of the set top terminal 220
and the quantity of information that is sent via the program
control information signal are the only limits on the number of
menus and amount of information that can be displayed to the
subscriber. The approach of using a series of menus in a simple
tree sequence is both easy for the subscriber to use and simply
implemented by the set top terminal 220 and remote control device
900 with cursor movement. A user interface software programmer will
find many obvious variations from the preferred embodiment
shown.
[0229] FIGS. 15a and 15b show examples of introductory menu screens
that are displayed on the subscriber's television. FIG. 15a, the
preferred embodiment, welcomes the subscriber to the cable system
and offers the subscriber three options. The subscriber may choose
regular cable television (channels 2 through 39), programs on
demand (e.g., movies), or instructions on the use of the remote
control 900. Other basic program options are possible on the
introductory menu screen 1000. For example, instead of, or in
addition to, the remote control 900 instructions, a system "help"
feature can be offered on the introductory menu 1000.
[0230] FIG. 15b shows an alternate embodiment for the introductory
menu screen 1000. In the upper left-hand corner of the menu, there
is a small window 1002 that may be customized to the subscriber. A
subscriber will be given the option of showing the current time in
this window. In the upper right-hand corner a second customized
window 1004 is available in which a subscriber may show the day and
date. These windows may be easily customized for subscribers to
show military time, European date, phase of the moon, quote of the
day, or other informational messages. These windows may be
customized by subscribers using on-screen menu displays following
the introductory menu 1000.
[0231] In the preferred embodiment, the subscriber is given the
capability of accessing base channels such as regular broadcast TV
and standard cable channels directly from the introductory menu
1000 by entering the channel number. The subscriber is also given
the capability of directly accessing his account with the cable
company. Further, in the preferred embodiment, the subscriber may
directly access a major menu 1020 and bypass the home menu screen
1010. If the subscriber is familiar with the programming choices
available on the major menus 1020, he may select an icon button
960, or a lettered key (alpha key) from his remote control 900 and
directly access the desired major menu 1020. If any key entry other
than those expected by the set top terminal 220 software program is
made, the home menu 1010 is placed on the television screen. In
addition, after a period of time if no selections are made from the
introductory menu 1000, the program may default to the home menu
screen 1010.
[0232] In the preferred embodiment, TV guide services, listing
programs available on network schedules, will be available on a
major menu, as shown in FIG. 16a. In the preferred embodiment, the
major TV guide menu 1036 would offer submenus, such as network
schedules for the next seven days, today's network schedules for
the next six hours, and TV guide picks for the next seven days. If
the particular set top terminal 220 has been subscribed to the TV
guide service, the subscriber may proceed to a submenu showing
schedules of programs. If the subscriber chooses the network
schedule submenu 1236, he is offered a list of network schedules to
choose from as shown in FIG. 16b. If a subscriber were to choose,
for instance, HBO, the submenu 1238 shown in FIG. 16c would appear.
This submenu allows a subscriber to choose the program date that
interests him. Following selection of a date, the subscriber is
shown a more specific submenu 1242 listing programs available on
the particular date as shown in 16d.
[0233] Following a program choice, a program description submenu
1244 is placed on the television screen as shown in FIG. 16e. In
addition, from this program description submenu, the viewer may
choose to record the selected program on his VCR using the guide
record feature.
[0234] FIGS. 17a, 17b, and 17c demonstrate the use of promotional
menus to sell subscriptions to services in the system. In
particular, FIG. 17a is a promotional menu 1304 for Level A
interactive services. Level A interactive services offers
subscribers additional information about programs such as quizzes,
geographical facts, etc. This information may be received by the
set top terminal 220 in several data formats including VBI and in
the program control information signal. FIG. 17b is a promotional
menu 1306 for Level B interactive services which include a variety
of on-line type services such as Prodigy, Yellow Pages, Airline
Reservations, etc.
[0235] FIG. 17c is a promotion menu 1308 for the Level C
interactive services. The Level C interactive services utilize
local storage such as CD technology to offer an enormous range of
multi-media experiences. The Level C interactive services require a
hardware upgrade as described earlier. Specially adopted CD-I and
CD-ROM units are needed for this service.
[0236] FIGS. 17d through 17j show menus that are available using
the interactive Level A services. When interactive Levels A
services are available in a television program, the system will
display the interactive logo consisting of the letter "I" and two
arrows with semicircular tails. In the preferred embodiment the set
top terminal 220 will place the interactive logo on the television
screen as an overlay menu 1310. In the preferred embodiment, the
set top terminal 220 will detect that there is data or information
available about a television program which can be displayed to a
subscriber using the interactive service. When the set top terminal
220 senses that there is interactive information available, it will
generate the interactive logo overlay menu and place it on the
television screen. For example, the set top terminal 220 will
detect that information on a television program is being sent in
the vertical blanking interval (VBI) and generate an interactive
logo overlay menu which will appear on the subscriber's television
screen for approximately fifteen seconds during each ten minute
interval of programming.
[0237] When the subscriber sees the interactive logo on his
television screen, he is made aware of the fact that interactive
services are available in conjunction with his television program.
If the subscriber presses his interactive remote control button, an
additional overlay menu will be generated by the set top terminal
220 and placed on the screen. This menu 1310 is shown in FIG. 17d
being overlayed on an interactive television program. From this
menu the subscriber may select interactive features or return to
the television program without interactive features.
[0238] If the subscriber selects interactive features he will be
presented with the interactive Level A submenu 1312 in FIG. 17e.
From this submenu the subscriber may choose a variety of different
types of textual interactivity with the current television program.
Some examples are quizzes, fast facts, more info, where in the
world, products, etc. At any time during the interactive submenus
the user may return to the television program without interactive
features.
[0239] This interactive submenu has an example of taking a complete
television program video, scaling it down to a smaller size and
directing the video into a video window of a submenu.
[0240] FIG. 17f shows an interactive fast facts submenu 1314. In
this submenu textual information is given to the subscriber in the
lower half of his screen. This textual information will change as
additional data is received by the set top terminal 220 relating to
this television program.
[0241] FIG. 17g shows the use of the subcategory "more information"
in the interactive service. This submenu 1316 gives additional
information related to the television program to the viewer in
textual form in the lower half of the screen. FIG. 17h is an
interactive submenu 1318 for the subcategory "quiz." In this
interactive subcategory, the user is presented with questions and a
series of possible answers. If the subscriber desires, he selects
one of the answers to the quiz question. After his selection, the
set top terminal 220 sequences to another menu. The set top
terminal 220 sequences to the interactive quiz answers submenu
which informs the subscriber whether he has chosen the correct
answer or not. FIG. 17i shows a correctly answered quiz question
1320 and FIG. 17j shows an incorrectly answered quiz question 1324.
In the preferred embodiment, the menu graphics for both of these
menus 17i and 17j is the same. The only difference is in the text
which can be generated by the text generator of the set top
terminal 220.
[0242] FIG. 18a is an example of a submenu for Level B interactive
services. From this menu screen 1330, any of a number of on-line
data services could be accessed. In FIG. 18a, the airline
reservations selection has been selected by the subscriber.
[0243] FIGS. 18a through 18l provide an example of a sequence of
menus that a subscriber may encounter with an on-line data service.
In particular, this example relates to airline information and
reservations and the subscriber in this sequence is reserving and
purchasing airline tickets. FIG. 18b is an example of the first
submenu 1332 for a data service offering various options. In this
case, the subscriber has the option of checking current
reservations or making new reservations. In each of these submenus
related to a data service, the subscriber is able to return to the
home menu 1010 or regular cable TV and exit the data service. FIG.
18c requires the subscriber to enter information related to his
airline reservation in this submenu 1334, such as: domestic or
international flight, year of flight reservation, month of flight
reservation.
[0244] FIG. 18d is another submenu in the airline information and
reservation data service. FIG. 18d provides an example of how the
subscriber may choose among many options on a single screen 1336.
In this manner, the preferred embodiment of the system can avoid
the use of a separate keyboard for textual entry. Although a
separate keyboard may be provided as an upgrade, it is an added
expense which some subscribers may wish to avoid. FIG. 18d shows an
"eye off the remote" approach to entering information. FIG. 18d
allows the user to chose the State in which he will depart and the
state in which he will arrive. The airline information reservation
submenu 1338 shown in FIG. 18e allows a subscriber to choose the
airports from which he will depart and arrive and also the
approximate time period of his departure and his arrival. FIG. 18f,
an airline information and reservation submenu 1340, allows a
subscriber to view six available flights. A subscriber may select
one of the flights to check on its availability.
[0245] FIG. 18g, an airline information and reservation submenu
1342, allows a subscriber to enter the month, day and year for the
availability date he desires. In this submenu, the subscriber is
offered the option of correcting any errors in the entered
information. This particular submenu is for a particular flight,
including flight number.
[0246] FIG. 18h, an airline information and reservation submenu
1344, allows a subscriber to view remaining seats available on a
flight. From the menu, the subscriber may select his seat
assignments. This submenu is an example of how information may be
graphically shown to a subscriber using a portion of the menu and
different coloring schemes. In this menu, the lower half of the
screen shows the passenger compartment of an airplane with all the
seat locations graphically represented by square blocks. By
coloring the available seat locations in blue and the unavailable
seat locations in a different color, the menu can present a great
deal of information in a limited amount of space. This graphic
presentation of information for the interactive on-line data
services is an important method of visually displaying large
amounts of information to the subscriber.
[0247] FIG. 18i, an airline information and reservation submenu
1346, allows the subscriber to choose a one-way or round-trip
ticket and to confirm his reservations. If the subscriber desires
to proceed, he may charge his airline ticket to his credit card by
choosing the appropriate strip menu on the lower part the
screen.
[0248] FIG. 18j, an airline information and reservation submenu
1348, is an example of how credit card purchases may be made using
the interactive on-line data services. In this particular menu, the
subscriber is charging a round-trip plane ticket on his credit
card. The subscriber simply needs to enter his credit card number,
expiration date, and credit card type to charge his airline
ticket.
[0249] FIG. 18k, an airline information and reservation submenu
1350, is an example of a menu which may be shown whenever an
on-line data service is processing a request sent by the
subscriber. In this particular menu, the on-line data service is
processing the subscriber's credit card charge for his airline
ticket.
[0250] FIG. 18l, an airline information and reservation submenu
1352, confirms a subscriber's airline ticket purchase and passes on
information on where the ticket may be picked up.
[0251] FIG. 19a is a major menu 1038 displaying the digital/audio
program choices which are available for subscribers who have paid
the monthly fee. In a chart format, the major menu shows the top
five, top ten, and top forty songs available in six different
categories of music. Below the chart, the system is able to provide
a text message describing the particulars of the audio program
selected.
[0252] The digital/audio feature of the invention allows a
subscriber to listen to CD quality audio selections through his
stereo. This can be accomplished by running cables directly from
the set top terminal 220 to the subscriber's amplifier/stereo
system. Alternatively, the user may listen to audio selections
through his television system.
[0253] FIGS. 19d and 19e are the same major menu 1038 as FIG. 19a
but shows a different selection and a different program description
in the lower text 1408, 1412. From any of the menu screens for the
digital/audio feature, the subscriber may return to regular cable
TV with the press of a single button.
[0254] FIGS. 19b and 19c are promotional menus 1400, 1404 for the
digital/audio feature. Using the same logos and menu format, the
system can provide a text description enticing the subscriber to
pay the monthly fee and join the service. In FIG. 19b, the menu
allows the user to test the system with a free demonstration. The
menu in FIG. 19c allows the subscriber to request additional
promotional information about the system. Both FIGS. 19b and 19c
are representative of promotional menus that may be used throughout
the menued system.
[0255] FIGS. 20 through 28 demonstrate the generation of menu
screens.
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