U.S. patent application number 12/571035 was filed with the patent office on 2010-10-14 for systems and methods for searching a media guidance application with multiple perspective views.
This patent application is currently assigned to ROVI TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION. Invention is credited to Christopher Bauder, Jason Conness, Thomas Steven Woods.
Application Number | 20100262931 12/571035 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42935338 |
Filed Date | 2010-10-14 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100262931 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Woods; Thomas Steven ; et
al. |
October 14, 2010 |
SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR SEARCHING A MEDIA GUIDANCE APPLICATION WITH
MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVE VIEWS
Abstract
Systems and methods are provided for navigating a media guidance
application with multiple perspective views. A first of a plurality
of media guidance objects may be displayed in a first perspective
view that appears flat on the screen. A second media guidance
object may be displayed in a second perspective view that appears
to be going into the screen creating the appearance of a fold
between the first and second media guidance application objects at
a location where the first perspective view changes into the second
perspective view. The second media guidance object in the second
perspective view may be caused to slide through the fold into the
first perspective view. The second media guidance object displayed
in the first perspective view may be selected. An action may be
performed for a media asset corresponding to the selected media
guidance object.
Inventors: |
Woods; Thomas Steven;
(Arlington Heights, IL) ; Conness; Jason; (Los
Angeles, CA) ; Bauder; Christopher; (Berlin,
DE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
ROPES & GRAY LLP
PATENT DOCKETING 39/361, 1211 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS
NEW YORK
NY
10036-8704
US
|
Assignee: |
ROVI TECHNOLOGIES
CORPORATION
Santa Clara
CA
|
Family ID: |
42935338 |
Appl. No.: |
12/571035 |
Filed: |
September 30, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61212414 |
Apr 10, 2009 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
715/773 ;
707/769; 707/E17.014; 715/764 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06T 15/20 20130101;
H04N 21/4312 20130101; G06T 2219/028 20130101; H04N 21/488
20130101; H04N 21/4821 20130101; G06T 19/00 20130101; H04N 21/4438
20130101; H04N 21/47214 20130101; H04N 5/44543 20130101; H04N
21/4828 20130101; H04N 21/47 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/773 ;
707/769; 707/E17.014; 715/764 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/048 20060101
G06F003/048; G06F 17/30 20060101 G06F017/30 |
Claims
1. A method for searching data in an interactive media guidance
application, the method comprising: displaying a plurality of media
asset search listings in a first perspective view; displaying, in a
second perspective view different from the first perspective view,
a plurality of media guidance application objects that are
associated with one of the plurality of media asset search
listings; and selecting, within the second perspective view, one of
the plurality of media guidance application objects that is
displayed in the second perspective view.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein each of the displayed media asset
search listings includes information representing timing of when a
search was performed corresponding to the media asset search
listing.
3. The method of claim 2 wherein the information further includes a
number that identifies how many media guidance application objects
match the media asset search listing.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the media asset search listings
correspond to media asset search results, further comprising:
displaying an interactive visual keypad in a third perspective view
different from the first and second perspective views.
5. The method of claim 4 further comprising: receiving an input
search string with the interactive visual keypad by highlighting
and selecting items of the visual keypad; and modifying the media
asset search listings that are displayed in the first perspective
view based on the received input.
6. The method of claim 1 further comprising displaying a first
plurality of the plurality of media guidance application objects
adjacent to a first of the media asset search listings, wherein
each of the first plurality of the plurality of media guidance
application objects include a first attribute in common with the
first media asset search listing.
7. The method of claim 6 further comprising: displaying a second
plurality of the plurality of media guidance application objects
adjacent to a second of the media asset search listings and
adjacent to the first plurality of media guidance application
objects, wherein: the second plurality of the plurality of media
guidance application objects have a second attribute in common with
the second media asset search listing.
8. The method of claim 7 wherein the second plurality of the
plurality of media guidance application objects are displayed in
perspective relative to the first plurality of media guidance
application objects.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein the second plurality of the
plurality of media guidance application appear smaller than the
first plurality of media guidance application objects.
10. The method of claim 1 wherein the media asset search listings
are displayed in perspective relative to each other.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein one of the media asset search
listings appears smaller than another one of the media asset search
listings.
12. The method of claim 1 wherein selecting one of the plurality of
media guidance application objects that are displayed in the second
perspective view comprises: moving, from a first position in the
second perspective view into a second position in the second
perspective view, the one of the plurality of media guidance
application objects, wherein a media guidance application object
displayed in the first position appear further away than a media
guidance application object displayed in the second position; and
selecting the media guidance application object that is displayed
in the second position in the second perspective view.
13. A system for searching data in an interactive media guidance
application, the system comprising: a display screen; and
processing circuitry configured to: display on the display screen a
plurality of media asset search listings in a first perspective
view; display on the display screen, in a second perspective view
different from the first perspective view, a plurality of media
guidance application objects that are associated with one of the
plurality of media asset search listings; and select, within the
second perspective view, one of the plurality of media guidance
application objects that is displayed in the second perspective
view.
14. The system of claim 13 wherein each of the displayed media
asset search listings includes information representing timing of
when a search was performed corresponding to the media asset search
listing.
15. The system of claim 14 wherein the information further includes
a number that identifies how many media guidance application
objects match the media asset search listing.
16. The system of claim 13 wherein the media asset search listings
correspond to media asset search results, wherein processing
circuitry configured to: display on the display screen an
interactive visual keypad in a third perspective view different
from the first and second perspective views.
17. The system of claim 16 wherein processing circuitry configured
to: receive an input search string with the interactive visual
keypad by highlighting and selecting items of the visual keypad;
and modify the media asset search listings that are displayed in
the first perspective view based on the received input.
18. The system of claim 13 wherein processing circuitry configured
to display on the display screen a first plurality of the plurality
of media guidance application objects adjacent to a first of the
media asset search listings, wherein each of the first plurality of
the plurality of media guidance application objects include a first
attribute in common with the first media asset search listing.
19. The system of claim 18 wherein processing circuitry configured
to: display on the display screen a second plurality of the
plurality of media guidance application objects adjacent to a
second of the media asset search listings and adjacent to the first
plurality of media guidance application objects, wherein: the
second plurality of the plurality of media guidance application
objects have a second attribute in common with the second media
asset search listing.
20. The system of claim 19 wherein the second plurality of the
plurality of media guidance application objects are displayed in
perspective relative to the first plurality of media guidance
application objects.
21. The system of claim 20 wherein the second plurality of the
plurality of media guidance application appear smaller than the
first plurality of media guidance application objects.
22. The system of claim 13 wherein the media asset search listings
are displayed in perspective relative to each other.
23. The system of claim 22 wherein one of the media asset search
listings appears smaller than another one of the media asset search
listings.
24. The system of claim 13 wherein processing circuitry configured
to: move, from a first position in the second perspective view into
a second position in the second perspective view, the one of the
plurality of media guidance application objects, wherein a media
guidance application object displayed in the first position appear
further away than a media guidance application object displayed in
the second position; and select the media guidance application
object that is displayed in the second position in the second
perspective view. 25-36. (canceled)
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 61/212,414, filed Apr. 10, 2009, the disclosure of
which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its
entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Due to the overwhelming volume of media content (e.g., video
and audio) available to the average person (e.g., via the Internet,
cable and satellite television and radio), interactive media
guidance applications, such as interactive program guides, have
gained widespread popularity. Typically, interactive program guides
present guide listings in a single perspective view grid indexed by
time and program source (e.g., a television channel). In
particular, the guide listings appear flat on the screen. These
guidance applications also present other guide related data (e.g.,
user profiles, recommendations) in a single perspective view.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] In view of the foregoing, systems and methods for navigating
a media guidance application with multiple perspective views in
accordance with various embodiments of the present invention are
provided.
[0004] In some embodiments, a first media guidance application
object may be displayed in a first perspective view. The first
media guidance application object that is displayed in the first
perspective view may be the media guidance application object that
is in focus. The first perspective view may be a view that is
similar to the two dimensional representation of objects in a
typical program guide. More specifically, media guidance
application objects displayed in the first perspective view may
appear flat on the screen.
[0005] A second media guidance application object may be displayed
in a second perspective view different from the first perspective
view. In some implementations, the second perspective view may be a
view that appears to go into the screen. In particular, media
guidance objects displayed in the second perspective view may
appear to go into the screen where media guidance application
objects gradually decrease in size. A fold or crease may appear
between the first and second media guidance application objects at
a point where the first perspective view changes into the second
perspective view.
[0006] In some embodiments, media guidance application objects may
include user profile representations, media asset representations,
one or more program guide listings, widgets, websites, one or more
menus of selectable items, visual keypads, search results, or any
combination of the same. In some implementations, the media
guidance application objects may be arranged in a particular
predefined order. In particular, media guidance objects may be
arranged in alphabetical order, numerical order, user defined
order, an order according to size of a corresponding media asset,
an order according to length of a corresponding media asset, an
order based on last access to a corresponding media asset, an order
based on type of a corresponding media assets, chronological order,
an order based on time intervals associated with corresponding
media assets, or some other suitable order such as in order of
relevance to the user.
[0007] In some embodiments, the user may input a command to cause
the second media guidance application object displayed in the
second perspective view to slide through a fold or crease from the
second perspective view into the first perspective view. In some
implementations, the user may press a right arrow key, to shift
media guidance application objects from the second perspective view
into the first perspective view and shift out of the first
perspective view the media guidance application object that was in
focus. More specifically, the user may navigate to earlier or later
media guidance application objects by pressing a right/left arrow
key to bring those media guidance application objects into the
first perspective view and thereby into focus.
[0008] In some embodiments, the media guidance application object
that is displayed in the first perspective view (e.g., the media
guidance application object that is in focus) may be selected by
the user. In some implementations, the user may press a confirm key
to select the media guidance application object that is in focus.
In some implementations, selecting the media guidance application
object that is in focus may allow the user to login, access,
playback, schedule for recording, schedule a reminder, receive
detailed information or otherwise perform an action relative to a
media asset associated with the media guidance application object
in focus.
[0009] In some embodiments, additional perspective views may be
provided for other media guidance application objects. In
particular, media guidance application objects that come earlier in
an order or sequence than the first media guidance application
object that is in focus, may appear in a third perspective view. In
some implementations, the media guidance application objects that
are in the third perspective view may appear to come out of the
screen towards the user. Media guidance application objects that
come earlier in the order or sequence than the media guidance
application object that is in focus may appear to be gradually
increasing in size in the third perspective view. A second fold or
crease may appear between the first media guidance application
object and the media guidance application objects in the third
perspective view at a point where the first perspective view
changes into the third perspective view. In some implementations,
the second and third perspective views include media guidance
objects on opposite sides of the first media guidance object
displayed in the first perspective view.
[0010] In some embodiments, media guidance objects displayed in the
third perspective view may be static. In particular, as the user
slides media guidance objects from the second perspective view into
the first perspective view through the fold or crease, media
guidance objects in the third perspective view may remain unchanged
or static and thereby not be moved. More specifically, the first
media guidance object may be removed from display instead of
sliding from the first perspective view through another crease into
the third perspective view when the second media guidance object
slides from the second perspective view into the first perspective
view.
[0011] In some embodiments, at least two of the media guidance
application objects may be displayed adjacent or next to the first
media guidance application object. When taken together, the first
media guidance application object and the at least two of the media
guidance application objects may appear to form an array of media
guidance application objects with a crease in the point of
adjacency between the first media guidance application object and
one of the at least two media guidance application objects. In some
implementations, the array of media guidance application objects
may be continuous such that no other data or objects separates any
two media guidance objects.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The above and other objects and advantages of the invention
will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed
description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout,
and in which:
[0013] FIGS. 1 and 2 show illustrative display screens that may be
used to provide media guidance application listings in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention;
[0014] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative user equipment device in
accordance with another embodiment of the invention;
[0015] FIG. 4 is a diagram of an illustrative cross-platform
interactive media system in accordance with another embodiment of
the invention;
[0016] FIGS. 5a-c show an illustrative display screens of media
guidance objects displayed in different perspectives in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention;
[0017] FIG. 5d shows an illustrative display screen of user profile
representations displayed in different perspectives in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention;
[0018] FIG. 6 shows an illustrative display screen of media asset
representations displayed in different perspectives in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention;
[0019] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative display screen of a main menu
displayed in a menu bar of the media guidance application in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0020] FIG. 8 shows a display screen of menu bar and submenu bar in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0021] FIG. 9 shows an illustrative display screen of program
scheduling information displayed in different perspectives in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0022] FIG. 10 shows an illustrative display screen of functions
corresponding to a selected program listing displayed accordance
with an embodiment of the invention;
[0023] FIG. 11 shows an illustrative display screen of information
corresponding to an option or item selected from a region on a
screen in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0024] FIG. 12 shows an illustrative display screen of detailed
information about a media asset in accordance with an embodiment of
the invention;
[0025] FIG. 13 shows an illustrative display screen of a search
function that allows the user to search for media assets in
different perspective views in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention;
[0026] FIG. 14 shows an illustrative display screen of a search
operation that allows the user to search for media assets in
different perspective views in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention;
[0027] FIG. 15 shows an illustrative display screen of accessing an
online video vendor with perspective views in accordance with an
embodiment of the invention;
[0028] FIG. 16 shows an illustrative display screen of accessing a
personal photo library using perspective views in accordance with
an embodiment of the invention;
[0029] FIG. 17 shows an illustrative display screen of a media
asset overlaid with widgets in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention;
[0030] FIG. 18 shows an illustrative display screen of an
information overlay displayed with a media asset in accordance with
an embodiment of the invention; and
[0031] FIGS. 19-27 are illustrative flow diagrams for using a media
guidance application with perspective views in accordance with
embodiments of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0032] This invention generally relates to navigating a media
guidance application with multiple perspective views. In
particular, an object of a plurality which is in focus (e.g., a
user profile, media asset, or program schedule information) is
displayed in a first perspective view and the remaining objects in
the plurality are displayed in a different second perspective view.
More specifically, the object in focus may be displayed to appear
flat on the screen and other objects may be displayed to appear as
though they are coming out or going into the screen. As defined
herein, an asset or media asset refers to any type of media (or
data file) that may be played, accessed, recorded and/or viewed. As
referred to herein, the term "focus" or being into focus should be
understood to mean to change the appearance of a displayed item or
object to make the item or object more visually prominent than
other items or objects.
[0033] The amount of media available to users in any given media
delivery system can be substantial. Consequently, many users desire
a form of media guidance through an interface that allows users to
efficiently navigate media selections and easily identify media
that they may desire. An application which provides such guidance
is referred to herein as an interactive media guidance application
or, sometimes, a media guidance application or a guidance
application.
[0034] Interactive media guidance applications may take various
forms depending on the media for which they provide guidance. One
typical type of media guidance application is an interactive
television program guide. Interactive television program guides
(sometimes referred to as electronic program guides) are well-known
guidance applications that, among other things, allow users to
navigate among and locate many types of media content including
conventional television programming (provided via traditional
broadcast, cable, satellite, Internet, or other means), as well as
pay-per-view programs, on-demand programs (as in video-on-demand
(VOD) systems), Internet content (e.g., streaming media,
downloadable media, Webcasts, etc.), and other types of media or
video content. Guidance applications also allow users to navigate
among and locate content related to the video content including,
for example, video clips, articles, advertisements, chat sessions,
games, etc. Guidance applications also allow users to navigate
among and locate multimedia content. The term multimedia is defined
herein as media and content that utilizes at least two different
content forms, such as text, audio, still images, animation, video,
and interactivity content forms. Multimedia content may be recorded
and played, displayed or accessed by information content processing
devices, such as computerized and electronic devices, but can also
be part of a live performance. It should be understood that the
invention embodiments that are discussed in relation to media
content are also applicable to other types of content, such as
video, audio and/or multimedia.
[0035] With the advent of the Internet, mobile computing, and
high-speed wireless networks, users are accessing media on personal
computers (PCs) and other devices on which they traditionally did
not, such as hand-held computers, personal digital assistants
(PDAs), mobile telephones, or other mobile devices. On these
devices users are able to navigate among and locate the same media
available through a television. Consequently, media guidance is
necessary on these devices, as well. The guidance provided may be
for media content available only through a television, for media
content available only through one or more of these devices, or for
media content available both through a television and one or more
of these devices. The media guidance applications may be provided
as on-line applications (i.e., provided on a web-site), or as
stand-alone applications or clients on hand-held computers, PDAs,
mobile telephones, or other mobile devices. The various devices and
platforms that may implement media guidance applications are
described in more detail below.
[0036] One of the functions of the media guidance application is to
provide media listings and media information to users. FIGS. 1-2
show illustrative display screens that may be used to provide media
guidance, and in particular media listings. The display screens
shown in FIGS. 1-2 and 5-18 may be implemented on any suitable
device or platform. While the displays of FIGS. 1-2 and 5-18 are
illustrated as full screen displays, they may also be fully or
partially overlaid over media content being displayed. A user may
indicate a desire to access media information by selecting a
selectable option provided in a display screen (e.g., a menu
option, a listings option, an icon, a hyperlink, etc.) or pressing
a dedicated button (e.g., a GUIDE button) on a remote control or
other user input interface or device. In response to the user's
indication, the media guidance application may provide a display
screen with media information organized in one of several ways,
such as by time and channel in a grid, by time, by channel, by
media type, by category (e.g., movies, sports, news, children, or
other categories of programming), or other predefined,
user-defined, or other organization criteria.
[0037] FIG. 1 shows illustrative grid program listings display 100
arranged by time and channel that also enables access to different
types of media content in a single display. Display 100 may include
grid 102 with: (1) a column of channel/media type identifiers 104,
where each channel/media type identifier (which is a cell in the
column) identifies a different channel or media type available; and
(2) a row of time identifiers 106, where each time identifier
(which is a cell in the row) identifies a time block of
programming. Grid 102 also includes cells of program listings, such
as program listing 108, where each listing provides the title of
the program provided on the listing's associated channel and time.
With a user input device, a user can select program listings by
moving highlight region 110. Information relating to the program
listing selected by highlight region 110 may be provided in program
information region 112. Region 112 may include, for example, the
program title, the program description, the time the program is
provided (if applicable), the channel the program is on (if
applicable), the program's rating, and other desired
information.
[0038] In addition to providing access to linear programming
provided according to a schedule, the media guidance application
also provides access to non-linear programming which is not
provided according to a schedule. Non-linear programming may
include content from different media sources including on-demand
media content (e.g., VOD), Internet content (e.g., streaming media,
downloadable media, etc.), locally stored media content (e.g.,
video content stored on a digital video recorder (DVR), digital
video disc (DVD), video cassette, compact disc (CD), etc.), or
other time-insensitive media content. On-demand content may include
both movies and original media content provided by a particular
media provider (e.g., HBO On Demand providing "The Sopranos" and
"Curb Your Enthusiasm"). HBO ON DEMAND is a service mark owned by
Time Warner Company L.P. et al. and THE SOPRANOS and CURB YOUR
ENTHUSIASM are trademarks owned by the Home Box Office, Inc.
Internet content may include web events, such as a chat session or
Webcast, or content available on-demand as streaming media or
downloadable media through an Internet web site (e.g., HULU or
YOUTUBE) or other Internet access (e.g., FTP).
[0039] Grid 102 may provide listings for non-linear programming
including on-demand listing 114, recorded media listing 116, and
Internet content listing 118. A display combining listings for
content from different types of media sources is sometimes referred
to as a "mixed-media" display. The various permutations of the
types of listings that may be displayed that are different than
display 100 may be based on user selection or guidance application
definition (e.g., a display of only recorded and broadcast
listings, only on-demand and broadcast listings, etc.). As
illustrated, listings 114, 116, and 118 are shown as spanning the
entire time block displayed in grid 102 to indicate that selection
of these listings may provide access to a display dedicated to
on-demand listings, recorded listings, or Internet listings,
respectively. In other embodiments, listings for these media types
may be included directly in grid 102. Additional listings may be
displayed in response to the user selecting one of the navigational
icons 120. (Pressing an arrow key on a user input device may affect
the display in a similar manner as selecting navigational icons
120.)
[0040] Display 100 may also include video region 122, advertisement
124, and options region 126. Video region 122 may allow the user to
view and/or preview programs that are currently available, will be
available, or were available to the user. The content of video
region 122 may correspond to, or be independent from, one of the
listings displayed in grid 102. Grid displays including a video
region are sometimes referred to as picture-in-guide (PIG)
displays. PIG displays and their functionalities are described in
greater detail in Satterfield et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,564,378,
issued May 13, 2003 and Yuen et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,239,794, issued
May 29, 2001, which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in
their entireties. PIG displays may be included in other media
guidance application display screens of the present invention.
[0041] Advertisement 124 may provide an advertisement for media
content that, depending on a viewer's access rights (e.g., for
subscription programming), is currently available for viewing, will
be available for viewing in the future, or may never become
available for viewing, and may correspond to (i.e., be related to)
or be unrelated to one or more of the media listings in grid 102.
Advertisement 124 may also be for products or services related or
unrelated to the media content displayed in grid 102. Advertisement
124 may be selectable and provide further information about media
content, provide information about a product or a service, enable
purchasing of media content, a product, or a service, provide media
content relating to the advertisement, etc. Advertisement 124 may
be targeted based on a user's profile/preferences, monitored user
activity, the type of display provided, or on other suitable
targeted advertisement bases.
[0042] While advertisement 124 is shown as rectangular or banner
shaped, advertisements may be provided in any suitable size, shape,
and location in a guidance application display. For example,
advertisement 124 may be provided as a rectangular shape that is
horizontally adjacent to grid 102. This is sometimes referred to as
a panel advertisement. In addition, advertisements may be overlaid
over media content or a guidance application display or embedded
within a display. Advertisements may also include text, images,
rotating images, video clips, or other types of media content.
Advertisements may be stored in the user equipment with the
guidance application, in a database connected to the user
equipment, in a remote location (including streaming media
servers), or on other storage means or a combination of these
locations. Providing advertisements in a media guidance application
is discussed in greater detail in, for example, Knudson et al.,
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/347,673, filed Jan. 17, 2003,
Ward, III et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,756,997, issued Jun. 29, 2004, and
Schein et al. U.S. Pat. No. 6,388,714, issued May 14, 2002, which
are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. It
will be appreciated that advertisements may be included in other
media guidance application display screens of the present
invention.
[0043] Options region 126 may allow the user to access different
types of media content, media guidance application displays, and/or
media guidance application features. Options region 126 may be part
of display 100 (and other display screens of the present
invention), or may be invoked by a user by selecting an on-screen
option or pressing a dedicated or assignable button on a user input
device. The selectable options within options region 126 may
concern features related to program listings in grid 102 or may
include options available from a main menu display. Features
related to program listings may include searching for other air
times or ways of receiving a program, recording a program,
scheduling a reminder for a program, ordering a program, enabling
series recording of a program, setting program and/or channel as a
favorite, purchasing a program, or other features. Options
available from a main menu display may include search options, VOD
options, parental control options, access to various types of
listing displays, subscribe to a premium service, edit a user's
profile, access a browse overlay, or other options.
[0044] The media guidance application may be personalized based on
a user's preferences. A personalized media guidance application
allows a user to customize displays and features to create a
personalized "experience" with the media guidance application. This
personalized experience may be created by allowing a user to input
these customizations and/or by the media guidance application
monitoring user activity to determine various user preferences.
Users may access their personalized guidance application by logging
in or otherwise identifying themselves to the guidance application.
Customization of the media guidance application may be made in
accordance with a user profile. The customizations may include
varying presentation schemes (e.g., color scheme of displays, font
size of text, etc.), aspects of media content listings displayed
(e.g., only HDTV programming, user-specified broadcast channels
based on favorite channel selections, re-ordering the display of
channels, recommended media content, etc.), desired recording
features (e.g., recording or series recordings for particular
users, recording quality, etc.), parental control settings, and
other desired customizations.
[0045] The media guidance application may allow a user to provide
user profile information or may automatically compile user profile
information. The media guidance application may, for example,
monitor the media the user accesses and/or other interactions the
user may have with the guidance application. Additionally, the
media guidance application may obtain all or part of other user
profiles that are related to a particular user (e.g., from other
web sites on the Internet the user accesses, such as
www.tvguide.com, from other media guidance applications the user
accesses, from other interactive applications the user accesses,
from a handheld device of the user, etc.), and/or obtain
information about the user from other sources that the media
guidance application may access. As a result, a user can be
provided with a unified guidance application experience across the
user's different devices. This type of user experience is described
in greater detail below in connection with FIG. 4. Additional
personalized media guidance application features are described in
greater detail in Ellis et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No.
11/179,410, filed Jul. 11, 2005, Boyer et al., U.S. Pat. No.
7,165,098, issued Jan. 16, 2007, and Ellis et al., U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 10/105,128, filed Feb. 21, 2002, which are
hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.
[0046] Another display arrangement for providing media guidance is
shown in FIG. 2. Video mosaic display 200 includes selectable
options 202 for media content information organized based on media
type, genre, and/or other organization criteria. In display 200,
television listings option 204 is selected, thus providing listings
206, 208, 210, and 212 as broadcast program listings. Unlike the
listings from FIG. 1, the listings in display 200 are not limited
to simple text (e.g., the program title) and icons to describe
media. Rather, in display 200 the listings may provide graphical
images including cover art, still images from the media content,
still frames of a video associated with the listing, video clip
previews, live video from the media content, or other types of
media that indicate to a user the media content being described by
the listing. Each of the graphical listings may also be accompanied
by text to provide further information about the media content
associated with the listing. For example, listing 208 may include
more than one portion, including media portion 214 and text portion
216. Media portion 214 and/or text portion 216 may be selectable to
view video in full-screen or to view program listings related to
the video displayed in media portion 214 (e.g., to view listings
for the channel that the video is displayed on).
[0047] The listings in display 200 are of different sizes (i.e.,
listing 206 is larger than listings 208, 210, and 212), but if
desired, all the listings may be the same size. Listings may be of
different sizes or graphically accentuated to indicate degrees of
interest to the user or to emphasize certain content, as desired by
the media provider or based on user preferences. Various systems
and methods for graphically accentuating media listings are
discussed in, for example, Yates, U.S. patent application Ser. No.
11/324,202, filed Dec. 29, 2005, which is hereby incorporated by
reference herein in its entirety.
[0048] Users may access media content and the media guidance
application (and its display screens described above and below)
from one or more of their user equipment devices. FIG. 3 shows a
generalized embodiment of illustrative user equipment device 300.
More specific implementations of user equipment devices are
discussed below in connection with FIG. 4. User equipment device
300 may receive media content and data via input/output
(hereinafter "I/O") path 302. I/O path 302 may provide media
content (e.g., broadcast programming, on-demand programming,
Internet content, and other video or audio) and data to control
circuitry 304, which includes processing circuitry 306 and storage
308. Control circuitry 304 may be used to send and receive
commands, requests, and other suitable data using I/O path 302. I/O
path 302 may connect control circuitry 304 (and specifically
processing circuitry 306) to one or more communications paths
(described below). I/O functions may be provided by one or more of
these communications paths, but are shown as a single path in FIG.
3 to avoid overcomplicating the drawing.
[0049] Control circuitry 304 may be based on any suitable
processing circuitry 306 such as processing circuitry based on one
or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal
processors, programmable logic devices, etc. In some embodiments,
control circuitry 304 executes instructions for a media guidance
application stored in memory (i.e., storage 308). In client-server
based embodiments, control circuitry 304 may include communications
circuitry suitable for communicating with a guidance application
server or other networks or servers. Communications circuitry may
include a cable modem, an integrated services digital network
(ISDN) modem, a digital subscriber line (DSL) modem, a telephone
modem, or a wireless modem for communications with other equipment.
Such communications may involve the Internet or any other suitable
communications networks or paths (which is described in more detail
in connection with FIG. 4). In addition, communications circuitry
may include circuitry that enables peer-to-peer communication of
user equipment devices, or communication of user equipment devices
in locations remote from each other (described in more detail
below).
[0050] Memory (e.g., random-access memory, read-only memory, or any
other suitable memory), hard drives, optical drives, or any other
suitable fixed or removable storage devices (e.g., DVD recorder, CD
recorder, video cassette recorder, or other suitable recording
device) may be provided as storage 308 that is part of control
circuitry 304. Storage 308 may include one or more of the above
types of storage devices. For example, user equipment device 300
may include a hard drive for a DVR (sometimes called a personal
video recorder, or PVR) and a DVD recorder as a secondary storage
device. Storage 308 may be used to store various types of media
described herein and guidance application data, including program
information, guidance application settings, user preferences or
profile information, or other data used in operating the guidance
application. Nonvolatile memory may also be used (e.g., to launch a
boot-up routine and other instructions).
[0051] Control circuitry 304 may include video generating circuitry
and tuning circuitry, such as one or more analog tuners, one or
more MPEG-2 decoders or other digital decoding circuitry,
high-definition tuners, or any other suitable tuning or video
circuits or combinations of such circuits. Encoding circuitry
(e.g., for converting over-the-air, analog, or digital signals to
MPEG signals for storage) may also be provided. Control circuitry
304 may also include scaler circuitry for upconverting and
downconverting media into the preferred output format of the user
equipment 300. Circuitry 304 may also include digital-to-analog
converter circuitry and analog-to-digital converter circuitry for
converting between digital and analog signals. The tuning and
encoding circuitry may be used by the user equipment to receive and
to display, to play, or to record media content. The tuning and
encoding circuitry may also be used to receive guidance data. The
circuitry described herein, including for example, the tuning,
video generating, encoding, decoding, scaler, and analog/digital
circuitry, may be implemented using software running on one or more
general purpose or specialized processors. Multiple tuners may be
provided to handle simultaneous tuning functions (e.g., watch and
record functions, picture-in-picture (PIP) functions,
multiple-tuner recording, etc.). If storage 308 is provided as a
separate device from user equipment 300, the tuning and encoding
circuitry (including multiple tuners) may be associated with
storage 308.
[0052] A user may control the control circuitry 304 using user
input interface 310. User input interface 310 may be any suitable
user interface, such as a remote control, mouse, trackball, keypad,
keyboard, touch screen, touch pad, stylus input, joystick, voice
recognition interface, or other user input interfaces. Display 312
may be provided as a stand-alone device or integrated with other
elements of user equipment device 300. Display 312 may be one or
more of a monitor, a television, a liquid crystal display (LCD) for
a mobile device, or any other suitable equipment for displaying
visual images. In some embodiments, display 312 may be
HDTV-capable. Speakers 314 may be provided as integrated with other
elements of user equipment device 300 or may be stand-alone units.
The audio component of videos and other media content displayed on
display 312 may be played through speakers 314. In some
embodiments, the audio may be distributed to a receiver (not
shown), which processes and outputs the audio via speakers 314.
[0053] The guidance application may be implemented using any
suitable architecture. For example, it may be a stand-alone
application wholly implemented on user equipment device 300. In
such an approach, instructions of the application are stored
locally, and data for use by the application is downloaded on a
periodic basis (e.g., from the VBI of a television channel, from an
out-of-band feed, or using another suitable approach). In another
embodiment, the media guidance application is a client-server based
application. Data for use by a thick or thin client implemented on
user equipment device 300 is retrieved on-demand by issuing
requests to a server remote to the user equipment device 300. In
one example of a client-server based guidance application, control
circuitry 304 runs a web browser that interprets web pages provided
by a remote server.
[0054] In yet other embodiments, the media guidance application is
downloaded and interpreted or otherwise run by an interpreter or
virtual machine (run by control circuitry 304). In some
embodiments, the guidance application may be encoded in the ETV
Binary Interchange Format (EBIF), received by control circuitry 304
as part of a suitable feed, and interpreted by a user agent running
on control circuitry 304. For example, the guidance application may
be a EBIF widget. In other embodiments, the guidance application
may be defined by a series of JAVA-based files that are received
and run by a local virtual machine or other suitable middleware
executed by control circuitry 304. In some of such embodiments
(e.g., those employing MPEG-2 or other digital media encoding
schemes), the guidance application may be, for example, encoded and
transmitted in an MPEG-2 object carousel with the MPEG audio and
video packets of a program.
[0055] User equipment device 300 of FIG. 3 can be implemented in
system 400 of FIG. 4 as user television equipment 402, user
computer equipment 404, wireless user communications device 406, or
any other type of user equipment suitable for accessing media, such
as a non-portable gaming machine. For simplicity, these devices may
be referred to herein collectively as user equipment or user
equipment devices. User equipment devices, on which a media
guidance application is implemented, may function as a standalone
device or may be part of a network of devices. Various network
configurations of devices may be implemented and are discussed in
more detail below.
[0056] User television equipment 402 may include a set-top box, an
integrated receiver decoder (IRD) for handling satellite
television, a television set, a digital storage device, a DVD
recorder, a video-cassette recorder (VCR), a local media server, or
other user television equipment. One or more of these devices may
be integrated to be a single device, if desired. User computer
equipment 404 may include a PC, a laptop, a tablet, a WebTV box, a
personal computer television (PC/TV), a PC media server, a PC media
center, or other user computer equipment. WEBTV is a trademark
owned by Microsoft Corp. Wireless user communications device 406
may include PDAs, a mobile telephone, a portable video player, a
portable music player, a portable gaming machine, or other wireless
devices.
[0057] It should be noted that with the advent of television tuner
cards for PC's, WebTV, and the integration of video into other user
equipment devices, the lines have become blurred when trying to
classify a device as one of the above devices. In fact, each of
user television equipment 402, user computer equipment 404, and
wireless user communications device 406 may utilize at least some
of the system features described above in connection with FIG. 3
and, as a result, include flexibility with respect to the type of
media content available on the device. For example, user television
equipment 402 may be Internet-enabled allowing for access to
Internet content, while user computer equipment 404 may include a
tuner allowing for access to television programming. The media
guidance application may also have the same layout on the various
different types of user equipment or may be tailored to the display
capabilities of the user equipment. For example, on user computer
equipment, the guidance application may be provided as a web site
accessed by a web browser. In another example, the guidance
application may be scaled down for wireless user communications
devices.
[0058] In system 400, there is typically more than one of each type
of user equipment device but only one of each is shown in FIG. 4 to
avoid overcomplicating the drawing. In addition, each user may
utilize more than one type of user equipment device (e.g., a user
may have a television set and a computer) and also more than one of
each type of user equipment device (e.g., a user may have a PDA and
a mobile telephone and/or multiple television sets).
[0059] The user may also set various settings to maintain
consistent media guidance application settings across in-home
devices and remote devices. Settings include those described
herein, as well as channel and program favorites, programming
preferences that the guidance application utilizes to make
programming recommendations, display preferences, and other
desirable guidance settings. For example, if a user sets a channel
as a favorite on, for example, the web site www.tvguide.com on
their personal computer at their office, the same channel would
appear as a favorite on the user's in-home devices (e.g., user
television equipment and user computer equipment) as well as the
user's mobile devices, if desired. Therefore, changes made on one
user equipment device can change the guidance experience on another
user equipment device, regardless of whether they are the same or a
different type of user equipment device. In addition, the changes
made may be based on settings input by a user, as well as user
activity monitored by the guidance application.
[0060] The user equipment devices may be coupled to communications
network 414. Namely, user television equipment 402, user computer
equipment 404, and wireless user communications device 406 are
coupled to communications network 414 via communications paths 408,
410, and 412, respectively. Communications network 414 may be one
or more networks including the Internet, a mobile phone network,
mobile device (e.g., Blackberry) network, cable network, public
switched telephone network, or other types of communications
network or combinations of communications networks. BLACKBERRY is a
service mark owned by Research In Motion Limited Corp. Paths 408,
410, and 412 may separately or together include one or more
communications paths, such as, a satellite path, a fiber-optic
path, a cable path, a path that supports Internet communications
(e.g., IPTV), free-space connections (e.g., for broadcast or other
wireless signals), or any other suitable wired or wireless
communications path or combination of such paths. Path 412 is drawn
with dotted lines to indicate that in the exemplary embodiment
shown in FIG. 4 it is a wireless path and paths 408 and 410 are
drawn as solid lines to indicate they are wired paths (although
these paths may be wireless paths, if desired). Communications with
the user equipment devices may be provided by one or more of these
communications paths, but are shown as a single path in FIG. 4 to
avoid overcomplicating the drawing.
[0061] Although communications paths are not drawn between user
equipment devices, these devices may communicate directly with each
other via communication paths, such as those described above in
connection with paths 408, 410, and 412, as well other short-range
point-to-point communication paths, such as USB cables, IEEE 1394
cables, wireless paths (e.g., Bluetooth, infrared, IEEE 802-11x,
etc.), or other short-range communication via wired or wireless
paths. BLUETOOTH is a certification mark owned by Bluetooth SIG,
INC. The user equipment devices may also communicate with each
other directly through an indirect path via communications network
414.
[0062] System 400 includes media content source 416 and media
guidance data source 418 coupled to communications network 414 via
communication paths 420 and 422, respectively. Paths 420 and 422
may include any of the communication paths described above in
connection with paths 408, 410, and 412. Communications with the
media content source 416 and media guidance data source 418 may be
exchanged over one or more communications paths, but are shown as a
single path in FIG. 4 to avoid overcomplicating the drawing. In
addition, there may be more than one of each of media content
source 416 and media guidance data source 418, but only one of each
is shown in FIG. 4 to avoid overcomplicating the drawing. (The
different types of each of these sources are discussed below.) If
desired, media content source 416 and media guidance data source
418 may be integrated as one source device. Although communications
between sources 416 and 418 with user equipment devices 402, 404,
and 406 are shown as through communications network 414, in some
embodiments, sources 416 and 418 may communicate directly with user
equipment devices 402, 404, and 406 via communication paths (not
shown) such as those described above in connection with paths 408,
410, and 412.
[0063] Media content source 416 may include one or more types of
media distribution equipment including a television distribution
facility, cable system headend, satellite distribution facility,
programming sources (e.g., television broadcasters, such as NBC,
ABC, HBO, etc.), intermediate distribution facilities and/or
servers, Internet providers, on-demand media servers, and other
media content providers. NBC is a trademark owned by the National
Broadcasting Company, Inc., ABC is a trademark owned by the ABC,
INC., and HBO is a trademark owned by the Home Box Office, Inc.
Media content source 416 may be the originator of media content
(e.g., a television broadcaster, a Webcast provider, etc.) or may
not be the originator of media content (e.g., an on-demand media
content provider, an Internet provider of video content of
broadcast programs for downloading, etc.). Media content source 416
may include cable sources, satellite providers, on-demand
providers, Internet providers, or other providers of media content.
Media content source 416 may also include a remote media server
used to store different types of media content (including video
content selected by a user), in a location remote from any of the
user equipment devices. Systems and methods for remote storage of
media content, and providing remotely stored media content to user
equipment are discussed in greater detail in connection with Ellis
et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/332,244, filed Jun. 11,
1999, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its
entirety.
[0064] Media guidance data source 418 may provide media guidance
data, such as media listings, media-related information (e.g.,
broadcast times, broadcast channels, media titles, media
descriptions, ratings information (e.g., parental control ratings,
critic's ratings, etc.), genre or category information, actor
information, logo data for broadcasters' or providers' logos,
etc.), media format (e.g., standard definition, high definition,
etc.), advertisement information (e.g., text, images, media clips,
etc.), on-demand information, and any other type of guidance data
that is helpful for a user to navigate among and locate desired
media selections.
[0065] Media guidance application data may be provided to the user
equipment devices using any suitable approach. In some embodiments,
the guidance application may be a stand-alone interactive
television program guide that receives program guide data via a
data feed (e.g., a continuous feed, trickle feed, or data in the
vertical blanking interval of a channel). Program schedule data and
other guidance data may be provided to the user equipment on a
television channel sideband, in the vertical blanking interval of a
television channel, using an in-band digital signal, using an
out-of-band digital signal, or by any other suitable data
transmission technique. Program schedule data and other guidance
data may be provided to user equipment on multiple analog or
digital television channels. Program schedule data and other
guidance data may be provided to the user equipment with any
suitable frequency (e.g., continuously, daily, a user-specified
period of time, a system-specified period of time, in response to a
request from user equipment, etc.). In some approaches, guidance
data from media guidance data source 418 may be provided to users'
equipment using a client-server approach. For example, a guidance
application client residing on the user's equipment may initiate
sessions with source 418 to obtain guidance data when needed. Media
guidance data source 418 may provide user equipment devices 402,
404, and 406 the media guidance application itself or software
updates for the media guidance application.
[0066] Media guidance applications may be, for example, stand-alone
applications implemented on user equipment devices. In other
embodiments, media guidance applications may be client-server
applications where only the client resides on the user equipment
device. For example, media guidance applications may be implemented
partially as a client application on control circuitry 304 of user
equipment device 300 and partially on a remote server as a server
application (e.g., media guidance data source 418). The guidance
application displays may be generated by the media guidance data
source 418 and transmitted to the user equipment devices. The media
guidance data source 418 may also transmit data for storage on the
user equipment, which then generates the guidance application
displays based on instructions processed by control circuitry.
[0067] Media guidance system 400 is intended to illustrate a number
of approaches, or network configurations, by which user equipment
devices and sources of media content and guidance data may
communicate with each other for the purpose of accessing media and
providing media guidance. The present invention may be applied in
any one or a subset of these approaches, or in a system employing
other approaches for delivering media and providing media guidance.
The following three approaches provide specific illustrations of
the generalized example of FIG. 4.
[0068] In one approach, user equipment devices may communicate with
each other within a home network. User equipment devices can
communicate with each other directly via short-range point-to-point
communication schemes describe above, via indirect paths through a
hub or other similar device provided on a home network, or via
communications network 414. Each of the multiple individuals in a
single home may operate different user equipment devices on the
home network. As a result, it may be desirable for various media
guidance information or settings to be communicated between the
different user equipment devices. For example, it may be desirable
for users to maintain consistent media guidance application
settings on different user equipment devices within a home network,
as described in greater detail in Ellis et al., U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/179,410, filed Jul. 11, 2005. Different
types of user equipment devices in a home network may also
communicate with each other to transmit media content or scheduled
media asset events (e.g., reminders for media assets). For example,
a user may transmit media content from user computer equipment to a
portable video player or portable music player.
[0069] In a second approach, users may have multiple types of user
equipment by which they access media content and obtain media
guidance. For example, some users may have home networks that are
accessed by in-home and mobile devices. Users may control in-home
devices via a media guidance application implemented on a remote
device. For example, users may access an online media guidance
application on a website via a personal computer at their office,
or a mobile device such as a PDA or web-enabled mobile telephone.
The user may set various settings (e.g., recordings, reminders,
program orders, or other settings) on the online guidance
application to control the user's in-home equipment. The online
guide may control the user's equipment directly, or by
communicating with a media guidance application on the user's
in-home equipment. Various systems and methods for user equipment
devices communicating, where the user equipment devices are in
locations remote from each other, is discussed in, for example,
Ellis et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/927,814, filed
Aug. 26, 2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in
its entirety.
[0070] In a third approach, users of user equipment devices inside
and outside a home can use their media guidance application to
communicate directly with media content source 416 to access media
content. Specifically, within a home, users of user television
equipment 404 and user computer equipment 406 may access the media
guidance application to navigate among and locate desirable media
content. Users may also access the media guidance application
outside of the home using wireless user communications devices 406
to navigate among and locate desirable media content.
[0071] It will be appreciated that while the discussion of media
content has focused on video content, the principles of media
guidance can be applied to other types of media content, such as
music, images, etc.
[0072] In some embodiments, media guidance application objects or
media guidance objects may be displayed in different perspective
views. In particular, one of the media guidance objects may be
displayed in a first perspective view (e.g., the media guidance
object appears flat on the screen) and other media guidance objects
may be displayed in a second perspective view (e.g., the media
guidance objects appear as though they are going into the screen or
coming out of the screen). As referred to above and below a fold or
crease is the point, line, position, place or location at which one
perspective view changes into another perspective view.
[0073] It should be understood that, in accordance with the present
invention, media guidance objects within a certain perspective view
have lines converging at the same vanishing point. More
specifically, the a line drawn between two points of one media
guidance object within a certain perspective view converges at the
same vanishing point as the line drawn between the same two points
of another media guidance object within the perspective view. For
example, when two media guidance objects resemble substantially the
same square shape, the line drawn between the top corners of one of
the squares converges at the same vanishing point as the line drawn
between the top corners of a second one of the squares. Similarly,
when media guidance objects in the same perspective view are of
different types/shapes, a line drawn between two reference points
of the media guidance object (e.g., the line drawn between the
center point of one eye of a face and the center point of the
second eye of the face) converge at the same vanishing points as
the line drawn, when the media guidance object is displayed
elsewhere in the same perspective view, between the same two
reference points of the media guidance object (e.g., the center
points of the eyes of the face).
[0074] For example, a media guidance application object displayed
in a first perspective view has lines converging at one vanishing
point and a media guidance application object displayed in a second
perspective view has lines converging at a different second
vanishing point. In some implementations, the media guidance
application object may be displayed in a first perspective view
such that it appears to be flat on the screen. In such a
perspective view, the media guidance application object lines may
never converge as the object appears flat on the screen and all
lines are parallel.
[0075] Although the description above and below relates to the
appearance of media guidance objects on a flat surface (e.g., a
two-dimensional display screen), it should be understood that the
same teaching may be applied to a display device that provides
hologram representations of the media guidance objects (e.g., a
holographic television or display apparatus). Holographic display
devices are described in greater detail in Teacherson U.S. Pat. No.
4,359,758, filed Apr. 5, 1979, and Brown et al. U.S. Pat. No.
4,376,950, filed Sep. 29, 1990, each of which is incorporated
herein by reference in its entirety. In particular, in a hologram
implementation, all media guidance objects within a certain
perspective view, as shown in the two-dimensional display, may be
positioned within a respective plane in the hologram. Additionally,
in the hologram implementation, each respective plane may have its
own perspective views within the plane such that multiple media
guidance objects in the plane of the hologram may be displayed
similarly to the two-dimensional display.
[0076] The media guidance objects displayed in a first perspective
view may be moved into a second perspective view for selection by
sliding the media guidance object through a fold or crease into the
first perspective view. The media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view may be selected by the user.
[0077] As defined herein, the term media guidance object or media
guidance application object means any website, live video feed, or
recorded video feed playback or visual representation of media
guidance application data such as a visual representation of a user
profile, a media asset, previously recorded media asset, media
asset recommendation, email message, notification, reminder,
scheduled recording, favorite channel, photograph, icon, sketch,
Short Message Service (SMS) message, Multimedia Messaging Service
(MMS) message, service provider message, new media asset release,
media category, a queue that includes media assets to be viewed at
a future time, a playlist of media assets, or home video, or any
combination of the same.
[0078] FIG. 5a shows an illustrative display screen 500a of media
guidance objects displayed in different perspectives in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention. In particular, screen 500a may
include a first media guidance object 514a, a second media guidance
object 510a, a third media guidance object 512c, a fourth media
guidance object 516a, a first perspective view 580a, a second
perspective view 582a and a third perspective view 584a. Although
four media guidance objects are shown in screen 500a, any number of
media guidance objects may be displayed in any of the different
perspectives. Also, although three different perspective views are
shown in screen 500a, any number of perspective views may be
provided.
[0079] First media guidance object 514a may be displayed in first
perspective view 580a. First media guidance object 514a may be for
example a user profile representation, a media asset
representation, a program guide listing, or any other media
guidance object discussed above and below or combination of the
same. First media guidance object 514a may be displayed such that
lines 524a converge at a first vanishing point 520a. All lines that
emerge from media guidance objects displayed in first perspective
view 580a may converge at first vanishing point 520a. First media
guidance object 514a appears to be coming out of screen 500a.
[0080] Second media guidance object 510a may be displayed in second
perspective view 582a. Second perspective view 582a may be
different from first perspective view 580a. Second media guidance
object 510a may be for example a user profile representation, a
media asset representation, a program guide listing, or any other
media guidance object discussed above and below or combination of
the same. Second media guidance object 510a may be of the same type
as first media guidance object 514a or of a different type.
[0081] Second media guidance object 510a may be displayed such that
lines 526a are parallel and may never converge at a vanishing
point. All lines that emerge from media guidance objects displayed
in second perspective view 582a may be parallel and never converge
at a vanishing point. Second media guidance object 510a appears to
be flat on screen 500a.
[0082] Third and fourth media guidance objects 512a and 516a may be
displayed in third perspective view 584a. Third and fourth media
guidance objects 512a and 516a may be for example user profile
representations, media asset representations, program guide
listings, or any other media guidance objects discussed above and
below or combination of the same. Third and fourth media guidance
objects 512a and 516a may be of the same type as first and/or
second media guidance objects 514a and 510a or of a different type.
In some implementations, third and fourth media guidance objects
512a and 516a may be of the same type (e.g., program listings) as
second media guidance object 510a and of a different type than
first media guidance object 514a.
[0083] Third and fourth media guidance objects 512a and 516a may be
displayed such that lines 528a converge at a second vanishing point
522a that is at a different location than first vanishing point
520a. All lines that emerge from media guidance objects displayed
in third perspective view 584a may converge at second vanishing
point 522a. Third and fourth media guidance objects 512a and 516a
appear to be going into screen 500a.
[0084] Although media guidance objects are displayed in different
perspective views, it should be understood that the media guidance
objects are clearly visually distinguishable by the user. However,
some media guidance objects that are displayed very far into a
particular perspective may become distorted and hard to visually
distinguish. For example, media guidance objects may be images or
videos such that most of the images or videos displayed in any
perspective view are ascertainable and clearly viewable by the
user. In particular, an image or video displayed in a perspective
view that appears to go into or come out of the screen is
substantially as clear as when the image or video is displayed in a
perspective view that appears flat on the screen.
[0085] The media guidance objects that are displayed in first
perspective view 580a may be adjacent or next to media guidance
objects displayed in second perspective view 582a. For example,
first media guidance object 514a may be displayed adjacent second
media guidance object 510a such that first media guidance object
514a and second media guidance object 510a connect at a first side
570a of second media guidance object 510a.
[0086] The media guidance objects that are displayed in third
perspective view 584a may be adjacent or next to the media guidance
object displayed in second perspective view 582a. In some
implementations, media guidance objects that are displayed in third
perspective view 584a may be adjacent to a side of the media
guidance object displayed in second perspective view 582a that is
opposite a side of the media guidance object displayed in second
perspective view 582a that is adjacent to the media guidance
objects that are displayed in first perspective view 580a. For
example, third media guidance object 512a may be displayed adjacent
second media guidance object 510a such that third media guidance
object 512a and second media guidance object 510a connect at a
second side 572a of second media guidance object 510a that is
opposite first side 570a.
[0087] The point of adjacency between a media guidance object
displayed in one perspective view and a media guidance object
displayed in another perspective view is referred to herein a
"fold" or a "folding point." It should be understood that the media
guidance objects may not be immediately adjacent such that they are
touching and in such circumstances the point of adjacency refers to
the point at which one perspective view changes into another
perspective view. For example, the media guidance objects in screen
500a are displayed in different perspectives to create two folding
points. There may be one, two or any other suitable number of
folding points in various embodiments. The folding points create
the appearance of a crease in the screen that occurs between two
displayed media guidance objects.
[0088] In some implementations, as a media guidance object slides
through the folding point from one perspective view into another
perspective view, the folding point may create the appearance of a
crease in the screen that occurs within different segments of the
media guidance object. More specifically, the media guidance object
may appear to slide through the folding point or crease from a
first perspective view to a second perspective view until the media
guidance object is completely within the second perspective view.
In particular, as shown FIG. 5b, as media guidance object 512a
slides from third perspective view 584a into second perspective
view 582a, one portion of media guidance object 512a may appear in
third perspective view 584a while another portion of media guidance
object 512a may appear in second perspective view 582a and the fold
or crease 572a may appear between the two portions of media
guidance object 512a that are displayed in the different
perspective views.
[0089] Connecting the media guidance objects from each of the
perspectives at the points of adjacency creates the appearance of
an array (which may be continuous) of displayed media guidance
objects. The array of media guidance objects may appear to have
folds at the points of adjacency. In particular, the array may
appear to have a crease at side 570a and at side 572a.
[0090] In some implementations, second perspective view 582a may be
adapted to display only one media guidance object at a time. In
particular, in some implementations, only one media guidance object
may appear flat on the screen at a time. This may enable the system
to focus the user's attention on a particular media guidance
object. Alternatively, any number of suitable media guidance
objects may be displayed to appear flat on the screen at a
time.
[0091] In some embodiments, the folds or creases and the different
perspective views in the array of media guidance objects may be
generated by displaying on the screen a row of first, second and
third media guidance objects that may appear flat on the screen.
The screen may have a surface normal (e.g., a line that is
perpendicular to the surface of the screen). The first media
guidance object may be positioned between the second and third
media guidance objects. Processing circuitry 306 may rotate, in a
clockwise direction towards the surface normal, a first portion of
the row that includes the second media guidance object while a
second portion of the row that includes the first media guidance
object remains stationary. For example, the first media guidance
object may be media guidance object 510a and the second media
guidance object may be media guidance object 512a. The first
portion of the row may include the media guidance objects in screen
500a that are shown to the right of media guidance object 510a
(including media guidance object 512a). The second portion may be
the center section of the row between lines 570a and 572a. Rotating
the first portion of the row in a clockwise direction towards the
surface normal while keeping the second portion stationary makes
the media guidance objects included in the first portion appear as
going into the screen. In some implementations, the first portion
is rotated to an angle having a value greater than zero degrees but
less than ninety degrees relative to a line that is perpendicular
to the surface normal of the screen and that intersects the first
portion.
[0092] In some embodiments, media guidance objects within each of
the three perspective views 580a, 582a and 584a may appear to
unfold onto the display screen. For example, processing circuitry
306 may first generate a display in which only media guidance
objects within first perspective view 580a appear to unfold onto
the screen from one side of the screen (e.g., the left side of the
screen) towards the opposite side of the screen (e.g., the right
side of the screen). In particular, media guidance objects may
appear to rotate clockwise from the left side of the screen towards
the right side of the screen until they appear to be in the desired
perspective view (e.g., coming out of the screen). In some
implementations, these media guidance objects may be rotated
clockwise towards the inside of the display screen to a position
between 180 and 270 degrees relative to the surface of the display
screen. After the media guidance objects within first perspective
view 580a are generated in the display, processing circuitry 306
may generate a display in which media guidance objects unfold from
first perspective view 580a into second perspective view 582a. For
example, media guidance objects within second perspective view 582a
may appear to come out of the media guidance objects within first
perspective view 580a and be rotated from the first perspective
view objects clockwise towards the inside of the screen until they
appear to be in second perspective view 582a (e.g., flat on the
display screen). Finally, after the media guidance objects within
first and second perspective views 580a and 582a are generated in
the display, processing circuitry 306 may generate a display in
which media guidance objects unfold from second perspective view
582a into third perspective view 584a. For example, media guidance
objects within third perspective view 584a may appear to come out
of the media guidance objects within second perspective view 582a
and be rotated from the second perspective view objects clockwise
towards the inside of the screen until they appear to be in third
perspective view 584a (e.g., going into the display screen).
[0093] In some embodiments, processing circuitry 306 may rotate, in
a clockwise direction towards the surface normal of the screen, a
third portion of the row that includes the third media guidance
object while the second portion of the row that includes the first
media guidance object remains stationary. For example, the third
media guidance object may be media guidance object 514a. The third
portion of the row may include the media guidance objects in screen
500a that are shown to the left of media guidance object 510a
(including media guidance object 514a). Rotating the third portion
of the row in a clockwise direction towards the surface normal
while keeping the second portion stationary makes the media
guidance objects included in the third portion appear as coming out
of the screen. In some implementations, the third portion is
rotated to an angle having a value greater than 180 degrees but
less than 270 degrees relative to a line that is perpendicular to
the surface normal of the screen and that intersects the third
portion.
[0094] The media guidance objects displayed in each of the
different perspective views may appear to lie along or within
planes oriented in different directions. For example, media
guidance object 514a in first perspective view 580a may appear to
lie along or within a first plane having a normal that intersects a
first portion of a normal of the display screen, where the first
portion of the normal of the display screen extends out of the
screen towards a user. The first plane may be oriented such that a
line within the first plane is perpendicular to the normal of the
first plane and parallel to the surface of the display screen.
[0095] Media guidance object 510a in second perspective view 582a
may lie along or within a second plane where the face of the second
plane is parallel to the surface of the display screen. Media
guidance object 514a in third perspective view 580a may appear to
lie along or within a third plane having a normal that intersects a
second portion of the normal of the display screen, where the
second portion of the normal of the display screen goes into the
display screen away from the user. The third plane may be oriented
such that a line within the third plane is perpendicular to the
normal of the third plane and parallel to the surface of the
display screen.
[0096] The second plane may intersect the first plane and the line
570a formed by the intersection of the first and second planes may
create the appearance of a first fold or crease in the display
screen. The second plane may intersect the third plane and the line
572a formed by the intersection of the second and third planes may
create the appearance of a second fold or crease in the display
screen. In some implementations, the first and third planes may be
parallel to each other and may be spaced apart from each other at a
distance equal to the distance between lines 570a and 572a created
by their intersections with the second plane. In some
implementations, the first plane may form a first angle with the
second plane and the third plane may form a different second angle
with the second plane such that at some point the first and third
planes intersect each other.
[0097] In some implementations, the media objects that are
displayed to appear flat on the screen (e.g., in second perspective
view 582a), may be selected by the user. Processing circuitry 306
may be programmed to only allow selections of a media guidance
object that is displayed in second perspective view 582a. In
particular, in order to select a desired media guidance object
displayed in any perspective view other than second perspective
view 582a, the user may instruct processing circuitry 306 (e.g., by
pressing a suitable control button) to slide or otherwise bring the
desired media guidance object into second perspective view
582a.
[0098] For example, when a user desires to select media guidance
object 512a, the user may press a right direction key (e.g., a
right arrow button) once to instruct processing circuitry 306 to
slide media guidance object 510a out of second perspective view
582a into first perspective view 580a (or remove media guidance
object 510a from the display (not shown)) and slide media guidance
object 512a into second perspective view 582a. FIG. 5b provides a
screen 500b illustrating a snapshot of the movement of media
guidance objects when the user presses a right direction key to
instruct processing circuitry 306 to slide the media guidance
objects towards the left. For example, as shown in screen 500b,
media guidance object 516b may appear to gradually be getting
larger (compared to the same media guidance object when in the
previous position, shown as media guidance object 516a) and thereby
closer within third perspective view 584a. In particular, media
guidance object 516b gradually is moved to a new position where
media guidance object 512a was displayed within third perspective
view 584a as media guidance object 512a is gradually moved into
second perspective view 582a shown as media guidance object 512b.
Media guidance object 512b appears to slide through fold 572a into
second perspective view 582a while media guidance object 510b
appears to slide through fold 570a into first perspective view
580a. At the end of the slide operation, media guidance object 510a
may be displayed in a position within first perspective view 580a
(shown as 510c (FIG. 5c)) where media guidance object 514a was
displayed; media guidance object 512a may be displayed in a
position within second perspective view 582a (shown as 512c (FIG.
5c)) where media guidance object 510a was displayed; and media
guidance object 516a may be displayed in a position within third
perspective view 584a (shown as 516c (FIG. 5c)) where media
guidance object 512a was displayed. In some implementations, first
perspective view 580a may be static such that during a slide
operation, media guidance object 514a remains stationary while
media guidance object 510a is removed from the display and media
guidance object 512a slides from third perspective view 584a
through fold 572a into second perspective view 582a.
[0099] The user may then select (e.g., by pressing an OK button)
media guidance object 512a that is now displayed in second
perspective view 582a. Similarly, when the user desires to select
media guidance object 516a, the user may press the right arrow
button twice to slide media guidance objects 510a and 512a into
different perspectives (or remove them from the display) and slide
into second perspective view 582a media guidance object 516a.
[0100] As defined herein, the term "slide" or "sliding" refers to
the visual appearance of contiguous portions of a media guidance
object being moved from a first perspective view into a second
perspective view at a particular speed such at a given point in
time one portion of the media guidance object is displayed in the
first perspective view and another portion of the media guidance
object is displayed in the second perspective view. The speed at
which the contiguous portions of media guidance object are moved
from one perspective view into another may be reflect how long in
time it takes to move all the portions of the media guidance object
from one perspective view into another perspective view. In
particular, a media guidance object may not be moved
instantaneously from one perspective view into another but may
appear to slide at a constant or dynamic speed (or rate) over
time.
[0101] For example, when the user instructs processing circuitry
306 to slide a media guidance object into another perspective view,
the media guidance object may be moved to the another perspective
view during a one second time interval (i.e., it may take one
second to move all the portions of the media guidance object from
one perspective view into another). The speed at which the portions
of the media guidance objects are moved between perspective views
may be pre-configured or adjustable (e.g., manually or
automatically).
[0102] Similarly, the user may select media guidance object 514a by
pressing a left direction key (e.g., a left arrow button) to
instruct processing circuitry 306 to slide media guidance object
514a towards the right and into second perspective view 582a and at
the same time slide media guidance object 510a into third
perspective view 584a (or remove the media guidance object from the
display). The other media guidance objects 512a and 516a in third
perspective view 584a may be shifted towards the right to make
visual room for media guidance object 510a in third perspective
view 584a. In some situations, media guidance object 516a may
disappear from the display or be difficult to read when the media
guidance objects in third perspective view 584 are shifted since it
would appear smaller after being shifted.
[0103] In some implementations, processing circuitry 306 may be
instructed to slide a media guidance object from third perspective
view 584a into second perspective view 582a and at the same time a
media guidance object displayed in second perspective view 582a
into a fourth perspective view (not shown) instead of into first
perspective view 580a. In particular, instead of sliding the media
guidance objects along the array, media guidance object 510a which
is displayed in the middle perspective view of the array, may be
removed from the array in a sliding manner into a fourth
perspective view.
[0104] The fourth perspective view may have objects with lines that
have a vanishing point at a location on the screen opposite the
location of vanishing point 522a. More specifically, the media
guidance objects displayed in the fourth perspective view may
appear to be going into a portion of the screen opposite that of
the media guidance objects displayed in third perspective view
584a. In particular, the media guidance objects displayed in the
fourth perspective view may appear as though they are behind
objects displayed in first perspective view 580a. In addition, the
media guidance objects displayed in first perspective view 580a may
be or may become partially transparent to allow the user to see
both the media guidance objects displayed in first perspective view
580a and the media guidance object that slides into the fourth
perspective view behind the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view 580a.
[0105] Alternatively, selections of media guidance objects
displayed in other perspective views may be performed without
sliding those media guidance objects into second perspective view
582a. For example, a cursor may be moved within any of the
perspective views to select any media guidance object displayed in
the screen. In particular, when the cursor is moved within a
perspective view that appears to go into the screen, the cursor may
gradually appear to decrease in size and highlight the various
media guidance objects displayed in that particular perspective
view.
[0106] In some implementations, the media guidance object may
instantaneously be moved by way of a jump operation from one
perspective view into another instead of sliding. In particular, in
such scenarios, the user may instruct processing circuitry 306 to
shift or move the media guidance objects left or right such that a
media guidance object from a first perspective view instantaneously
appears in a second perspective view and the media guidance object
that was displayed in the second perspective view instantaneously
disappears. In some implementations, a combination of a slide and
jump operations may be provided. For example, a media guidance
object may jump from a first perspective view into a second
perspective view while the media guidance object that was in the
second perspective view may slide out of the second perspective
view elsewhere (e.g., disappear completely or slide into another
perspective view).
[0107] In some implementations, media guidance objects 510a, 512a
and 516a may be part of an ordered sequence of media guidance
objects. For example, media guidance objects 510a, 512a and 516a
may be media asset recommendations that are ordered alphabetically
or based on a level of relevance to the user. Accordingly, media
guidance object 510a which is displayed in second perspective view
582a may come earlier alphabetically or may be more relevant to the
user (i.e., may come earlier in the ordered sequence) than media
guidance objects 512a and 516a which are displayed in third
perspective view 584a. Similarly, media guidance object 514a which
is displayed in first perspective view 580a may come earlier
alphabetically or may be more relevant to the user (i.e., may come
earlier in the ordered sequence) than media guidance object 510a
which is displayed in second perspective view 582a and media
guidance objects 512a and 516a which are displayed in third
perspective view 584a.
[0108] In some implementations, media guidance objects 510a, 512a
and 516a may be media asset representations that are placed in
order based on at least one attribute (e.g., a title, broadcast
date/time, release date, runtime, length, content type, subject
matter type, critics rating) of the media asset representation. For
example, media guidance objects 510a, 512a and 516a may be placed
in order such that the media guidance objects that are positioned
earlier in the sequence (e.g., to be viewed before other media
guidance objects) have a shorter runtime than media guidance
objects that are positioned later in the sequence or vice versa.
For example, media guidance objects 510a, 512a and 516a may be
placed in order such that the media guidance objects that are
positioned earlier in the sequence (e.g., to be viewed before other
media guidance objects) correspond to a particular subject matter
category than media guidance objects that are positioned later in
the sequence or vice versa. For example, media guidance objects
510a, 512a and 516a may be placed in order such that the media
guidance objects that are positioned earlier in the sequence (e.g.,
to be viewed before other media guidance objects) have a higher
critics rating than media guidance objects that are positioned
later in the sequence or vice versa.
[0109] It should be understood that although the media guidance
objects are shown as occupying a certain portion of the screen,
each media guidance object may occupy a larger or smaller portion
of the screen. It should further be understood that although the
media guidance objects are represented as rectangular shapes, any
other shape (e.g., circle, square, triangle or other polygon) or
combination of different shapes may be used for the media guidance
objects (e.g., one media guidance object may be circular in shape
while another may be triangular in shape). It should also be
understood that although the media guidance objects are displayed
along the horizontal of the screen from left to right, the media
guidance objects may be displayed along the vertical of the screen
from top to bottom. For example, a media guidance object may be
displayed in a first perspective on the top of the screen and other
media guidance objects may be displayed in a second perspective
underneath the media guidance object displayed in the first
perspective. Accordingly, the line of the fold at the point of
adjacency between the media guidance objects of the first and
second perspective views would appear as going along the horizontal
axis of the screen whereas the line of the folds shown in screen
500a appears as going along the vertical axis of the screen.
[0110] It should be understood that any of the media guidance
objects shows and described above and below as being adjacent to
each other, whether they are adjacent within a particular
perspective view or between two different perspective views, may be
immediately adjacent to each other (e.g., appear to be touching or
connected to each other), or may have some spacing of suitable
amount (or have other data or objects) between the adjacent objects
to make it easier to distinguish between any adjacent objects. In
some implementations, the media guidance objects may be adjacent to
each other at the vertical or horizontal edges or sides of the
media guidance objects. For example, two or more media guidance
objects that are square or rectangular in shape may be connected to
each other and adjacent such the right edge of one square media
guidance object touches or substantially touches the left edge of
another adjacent square media guidance object.
[0111] In some embodiments, the media guidance objects that are
displayed in different perspectives may be user profile
representations. In particular, the user may view the various
profiles that are stored as an array of media guidance objects and
select a desired user profile. The selected user profile
representation may be used to retrieve a corresponding user profile
to log the user associated with that user profile into user
equipment device 300.
[0112] FIG. 5d shows an illustrative display screen 500d of user
profile representations displayed in different perspectives in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular,
screen 500d illustrates the implementation where the media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screens 500a-c are user
profile representations. For example, screen 500d may include a
first user profile representation 514d displayed in a first
perspective view, a second user profile representation 510d
displayed in a second perspective view and third and fourth user
profile representations 512d and 516d displayed in a third
perspective view. First user profile representation 514d may
correspond to first media guidance object 514a, second user profile
representation 510d may correspond to second media guidance object
510a, third user profile representation 512d may correspond to
third media guidance object 512a, and fourth user profile
representation 516d may correspond to fourth media guidance object
516a.
[0113] A user profile representation may be a photograph, a video,
an icon, a sketch, or any other visual indicator that is unique to
a particular user that allows the user to associate the particular
user profile representation with the profile of the user. For
example, a picture of the user (e.g., Stewie) may be displayed as
the user profile representation indicating to Stewie that the user
profile representation is associated with Stewie's user profile.
Selection of the user profile representation (as discussed above)
may instruct processing circuitry 306 to login the user Stewie into
user equipment device 300. In some implementations, each user may
have multiple user profiles each including preferences associated
with different moods of the user. For example, when the user is
sad, the user may have a profile setup with preferences targeted
towards cheerful content or media assets (e.g., action or comedies)
to counterbalance the sad mood of the user. In another situation,
when the user is happy, the user may have a profile setup with
preferences targeted towards other type of content or media assets
or the same cheerful content or media assets (e.g., romance or
drama media assets). In such scenarios, each user profile
representation may correspond to a different one of the profiles
that are associated with the different moods of the particular
user.
[0114] A textual indicator 540d may be displayed next to each user
profile representation. Textual indicator 540d may provide the name
of the user associated with a particular user profile
representation (not shown). In some implementations, textual
indicator 540d is only displayed with the user profile
representation displayed in the second perspective view
(shown).
[0115] The functionality discussed above in connection with the
media guidance objects displayed in screen 500a applies in a
similar manner to the user profile representations displayed in
screen 500d. For the sake of brevity the functionality of selecting
and navigating about the user profile representations displayed in
screen 500d is omitted but should be understood to be the same as
the functionality of selecting and navigating about media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screen 500a (FIG. 5a). In
particular, the manner of selecting different user profile
representations by, for example, sliding into the second
perspective view user profile representations displayed in other
perspective views or moving a cursor into the different perspective
views to select a user profile representation may be performed in
the same manner as discussed above in connection with FIG. 5a.
[0116] As shown in screen 500d, the user profile representations of
each different perspective view may be displayed adjacent one
another to form a continuous array 530d of user profile
representations. As discussed above in connection with FIG. 5a,
continuous array 530d may include folds at the points of adjacency
between the user profile representations displayed in one
perspective view and the user profile representation displayed in
another perspective view. For example, continuous array 530d may
include a first fold 520d at the point of adjacency between user
profile representation 514d and a first side (e.g., left side) of
user profile representation 510d. Continuous array 530d may include
a second fold 522d at the point of adjacency between user profile
representation 512d and a second side (e.g., right side) of user
profile representation 510d.
[0117] Folds 520d and 522d give the visual appearance of creases
between user profile representations at the ends of each
perspective view where a user profile representation from one
perspective view meets or is adjacent to a user profile
representation from another perspective view.
[0118] Screen 500d may also include a background 550b. Background
550d may be a currently tuned to television channel, media asset
being played, an advertisement, or any other picture or video that
can be seen through or as part of continuous array 530d of user
profile representations. Audio may also be provided as the user
navigates screen 500d.
[0119] In some embodiments, the media guidance objects that are
displayed in different perspectives may be media asset
representations. In particular, the user may view the various media
asset representations that are stored as a continuous array of
media guidance objects and select a desired media asset
representation. The selected media asset representation may be used
to retrieve a corresponding media asset from memory and playback
the retrieved media asset on user equipment device 300.
[0120] FIG. 6 shows an illustrative display screen 600 of media
asset representations displayed in different perspectives in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular,
screen 600 illustrates the implementation where the media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screens 500a-c are media asset
representations. For example, screen 600 may include a recent
program recordings menu region 610, a program recommendations menu
region 620, a messages menu region 630 and an advertisement region
640.
[0121] Recent program recordings menu region 610 may display a
first media asset representation 652 in a first perspective view
and second, third and fourth media asset representations 654, 655
and 656 in a second perspective view. First media asset
representation 652 may correspond to second media guidance object
510a (FIG. 5a), second media asset representation 654 may
correspond to third media guidance object 512a and third media
asset representation 655 may correspond to fourth media guidance
object 516a. Although the media asset representations are displayed
in only two perspective views, it should be understood that the
media asset representations may be displayed in any number of
perspective views, for example, in a similar manner as the three
perspective view of media guidance objects of FIG. 5a.
[0122] It should be understood that as referred to above and below,
a media asset representation is any photograph, video, icon,
sketch, text, or other visual indicator or combination of the same
that is unique to a particular media asset that allows the user to
associate the particular media asset representation with the media
asset. For example, a picture of the label of a show (e.g.,
TrueBlood) may be displayed as the media asset representation
indicating to the user that the media asset representation is
associated with the show TrueBlood. Selection of the media asset
representation (as discussed above) may instruct processing
circuitry 306 to playback or access the media asset associated with
the media asset representation on user equipment device 300.
[0123] The media asset representations displayed in recent program
recordings menu region 610 may correspond to media assets which are
stored on user equipment device 300. In particular, media asset
representations may correspond to a previously recorded television
program, previously downloaded media asset or television program,
previously transferred media asset, or any other suitable media
asset that is readily available for access on user equipment device
300. Readily available for access could mean that the media asset
was recorded on a remote device, such as, a server computer, and
can be downloaded on-demand from that device upon request by the
user. In particular, the media asset representations displayed in
recent program recordings menu region 610 may correspond to locally
stored or remotely stored media assets.
[0124] The user may browse the media asset representations
displayed in recent program recordings menu region 610 in the same
manner as discussed above in connection with FIG. 5a. For example
the user may press a right arrow key to slide into the first
perspective view a media asset representation from the second
perspective view.
[0125] An indicator may be provided or displayed in recent program
recordings menu region 610 indicating to the user the number of
total available stored media assets. The indicator may also
indicate the number of newly or most recently recorded media assets
(e.g., in the past 7 days or any other suitable time frame).
[0126] Textual indicators 660 and 662 may be displayed next to a
corresponding media asset representation. In particular, textual
indicator 660 may provide the name or title of the media asset
associated with media asset representation 654 and textual
indicator 662 may provide the name or title of the media asset
associated with media asset representation 656. In addition,
textual indicators 660 and 662 may also provide other information
about the media asset corresponding to the media asset
representations, such as, a start time, channel, program source,
short description or any other suitable information.
[0127] Textual indicators 660 and 662 may appear in accordance with
the perspective view in which the corresponding media asset
representation is displayed. In particular, textual indicator 660
corresponds to media asset representation 654 that appears closer
than media asset representation 662 that corresponds to textual
indicator 662. Accordingly, textual indicator 660 may be larger in
size than textual indicator 662 to appear visually closer to the
user.
[0128] The functionality discussed above in connection with the
media guidance objects displayed in screen 500a applies in a
similar manner to the media asset representations displayed in
recent program recordings menu region 610. For the sake of brevity
the functionality of selecting and navigating about the media asset
representations displayed in recent program recordings menu region
610 is omitted but should be understood to be the same as the
functionality of selecting and navigating about media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screen 500a (FIG. 5a). In
particular, the manner of selecting different media asset
representations by, for example, sliding into the first perspective
view media asset representations displayed in the second
perspective view or moving a cursor into the second perspective
view to select a media asset representation may be performed in the
same manner as discussed above in connection with FIG. 5a.
[0129] Recent program recordings menu region 610 may display the
media asset representations of each different perspective view
adjacent one another to form a continuous array 612 of media asset
representations. As discussed above in connection with FIG. 5a,
continuous array 612 may include a fold at the point of adjacency
between the media asset representations displayed in one
perspective view and the media asset representation displayed in
another perspective view. For example, continuous array 612 may
include a fold 650 at the point of adjacency between media asset
representation 654 and a first side (e.g., right side) of media
asset representation 652.
[0130] The user may access program recommendations menu region 620
and messages menu region 630 by clicking the corresponding menu bar
of those regions or pressing a down arrow key on a remote control.
When the user presses the down arrow key while viewing recent
program recordings in region 612, the recent program recordings
menu region 612 may close (or collapse) leaving only a bar
displayed that includes text identifying the type and/or number of
media objects displayed in the menu. As a result of the user
pressing the down arrow key, while viewing recent program
recordings in region 612, program recommendations region 620 may
open and display media asset representations corresponding to media
asset recommendations in a continuous array similar to continuous
array 612. Pressing the down arrow key again, may cause the media
asset recommendations region to close, and open messages region 630
to display message representations corresponding to messages of the
user in a continuous array similar to continuous array 612.
[0131] It should be understood, that any other type or number of
menu bars may be displayed associated with different types of media
guidance objects. It should also be understood that the menu bars
may be displayed in any arrangement and order not limited to the
exemplary arrangement and order shown in screen 600. For example,
the menu bars may be displayed side-by-side or along a diagonal
instead of on top of each other as shown. Alternatively, the menu
bars may be displayed as tabs with visual indications that identify
the type of media guidance objects that correspond to each menu.
The media guidance objects may be displayed in the same region but
the type of objects may change based on which tab is selected.
[0132] For example, as shown and described below in connection with
FIG. 15, menu bars 1550 are displayed on the left portion of the
screen and the media guidance objects corresponding to a selected
menu bar are displayed in the same region of the screen on the
right portion. As the user navigates to select different menu bars
by, for example, pressing an up/down arrow key or using a movable
cursor (e.g., mouse), media guidance objects associated with the
selected menu bar are displayed in perspective similar to the
manner in which media asset representations are displayed in
program recommendations menu region 620.
[0133] Selection of program recommendations menu region 620, by
pressing a down arrow key or using some other cursor or navigation
tool, may cause media asset representations corresponding to media
asset recommendations to be displayed in perspective similar to the
manner of display provided in recent program recordings menu region
610. In particular, processing circuitry 306 may search for and
find media assets that may be of interest or relevant to a user
based on a user profile that is selected in, for example, screen
500b. The media assets that are found may be identified to the user
as media asset representations using icons, images, videos, clips
or any other suitable way in perspective similar to the manner in
which media asset representations are displayed in region 610.
[0134] The user may navigate to and select a particular media asset
representation that corresponds to a media asset recommendation.
Processing circuitry 306 may allow the user to tune to, schedule
for recording, schedule a reminder, place an order, or otherwise
access the media asset associated with a selected media asset
recommendation.
[0135] Selection of messages menu region 630, by pressing a down
arrow key or using some other cursor or navigation tool, may cause
message representations corresponding to user messages to be
displayed in perspective similar to the manner of display provided
in recent program recordings menu region 610. In particular,
processing circuitry 306 may retrieve from memory or receive
another device (e.g., BLACKBERRY, mobile phone or mobile device),
the Internet, cable or satellite service provider, server or other
suitable message providing service, messages for the user. The
messages may be emails, SMS messages, MMS messages, service
provider messages, emergency or service alerts or instant messages.
The messages that are retrieved or received may be identified to
the user as messages representations using icons, images, text or
any other suitable way in perspective similar to the manner in
which media asset representations are displayed in region 610.
[0136] The user may navigate to and select a particular message
representation that corresponds to a message that is retrieved or
received. Processing circuitry 306 may allow the user to view,
respond, forward, delete, or otherwise access the message
associated with a selected message representation.
[0137] The user may also select a main menu key or press a left
arrow key to navigate to the main menu of the media guidance
application. FIG. 7 shows an illustrative display screen 700 of a
main menu 710 displayed in a menu bar 740 of the media guidance
application in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
[0138] Menu bar 740 may be displayed on a side of the screen, such
as, the top, left, right or bottom of the screen or in any other
suitable location (e.g., the middle of the screen). Menu bar 740
may be displayed/accessed while viewing/accessing a media asset 750
by pressing a key (e.g., menu key or right arrow key) on a remote
control. Although, media asset 750 is shown as a television
program, it should be understood that media asset 750 may be an
audio only program and in such a situation a background video or
image may or may not be displayed in place of the television
program. Also, although media asset 750 is shown as a television
program, it should be understood that media asset 750 may be any
other type of video such as a home video, live video, video
conference and/or on-demand video/audio media.
[0139] It should be understood that although different keys are
discussed above and below as being used to navigate through the
media guidance application, the same function may be performed by
using suitable voice recognition techniques. For example, the user
may state a command (e.g., "move right"), and the processing
circuitry 306 may respond in the same manner as a selection of a
right arrow key on a remote control.
[0140] Menu bar 740 may be displayed simultaneously with a media
asset 750 being played. For example, media asset 750 may be a
television program (live or previously recorded) and menu bar 740
may be overlaid on top of the television program. Menu bar 740 may
be partially transparent such that the media asset 750 and
information (e.g., main menu 710) in menu bar 740 are viewable at
the same time. In particular, both menu bar 740 and media asset 750
may appear in a same region 730 of the display.
[0141] Items of main menu 710 may be displayed in a perspective
view. For example, the item in focus (e.g., the item which may be
selected using a select command) may be displayed more prominently
or larger than other items in main menu 710. In particular, items
that are farther away from an item in focus may be smaller in size
than the item in focus.
[0142] Items of main menu 710 may include a widgets item 720,
photos item 722, television item 724, music item 726, settings item
727 and logout item 728. Selection of any of the items of main menu
710 may bring up a display of options, menus and/or media guidance
objects associated with the selected item. For example, selection
of music item 726 may bring up a display of media guidance objects
that represent one or more playlists or media assets of a
playlist.
[0143] In addition, selection of photos item 722 may navigate the
user to a photo browser screen 1600 discussed below in connection
with FIG. 16. Selection of music item 726 may navigate a user to a
music browser that is similar to photo browser 1600 but in the
context of music. In particular, whereas in photo browser screen
1600, album titles may be displayed on top of each other in a
continuous array of pictures displayed in perspective corresponding
to an album, the music browser may display each playlist or music
album title on top of each other in a continuous array of music
asset representations displayed in perspective corresponding to the
playlist or music album.
[0144] Selection of logout item 728 may log the current user or
users out of the media guidance application and navigate the user
back to screen 500d (FIG. 5d) to allow another user to select a
user profile representation and log in to the media guidance
application. Selection of settings item 727 may allow the user to
change options in the system such as the way media guidance objects
are displayed, reminder times, add/remove/edit user profiles,
select which types of media guidance objects to display in
perspective views and which types not to display in perspective
views, or setup an Internet connection (e.g., user passwords,
router passwords, or any other account preferences).
[0145] Each displayed item may include a visual indicator, text 714
and/or icon 742, that identifies the content associated with the
item to the user. For example, widgets item 720 may include a cloud
icon that identifies to the user that widgets item 720 is
associated with Internet delivered content and applications.
Similarly, photos item 722 may include a camera icon and television
item 724 may include a television icon. The visual indicators may
be displayed in perspective as the items of main menu 710 are
displayed in perspective. In particular, the visual indicators that
are further away from an item in focus may be gradually smaller in
size.
[0146] Selection of widget item 720 may display a submenu bar 820
(FIG. 8) with items that correspond to the selected widget item.
For example, the items displayed in submenu bar 820 may include
different types of widgets that are available for the user to
select. Some of the widgets may include different webpages, weather
applications, sports applications, chat applications, stock
applications, social networking applications or any other suitable
application that can be provided in the form of a widget. The
widgets specifically are modular applications that may be displayed
as small graphical elements that may be interactive or static.
[0147] Selection of television item 724 may display a submenu bar
820 (FIG. 8) with items that correspond to the selected item.
Submenu bar 820 may be displayed adjacent to menu bar 740 or
anywhere else on the screen. In some implementations, after the
user selects an item from menu bar 740, processing circuitry 306
may shorten menu bar 740 so that it continues to inform the user of
the items available in menu bar 740 while occupying a smaller
region on the screen.
[0148] FIG. 8 shows a display screen 800 of menu bar 810 and
submenu bar 820 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.
In particular, menu bar 810 may only display one type of visual
indicator (e.g., an icon) that identifies each item of menu bar
740. Menu bar 810 may include a visual indicator (e.g., a highlight
region) that identifies to the user which item was selected from
menu bar 810 for which submenu bar 820 displays the corresponding
items.
[0149] For example, the user may select television item 814 and a
highlight region may be displayed over the television icon
indicating that selection. Submenu bar 820 may display items
corresponding to the television item 814 adjacent to the menu bar
810. In particular, submenu bar 820 may include a program guide
item 830, an online movie vendor item 822, program search item, a
watch television item, and any other suitable item related to or
corresponding to television viewing. The items in submenu bar 820
may displayed in perspective similar to the manner of display of
items in menu bar 740.
[0150] The user may navigate to different items in submenu bar 820
by, for example, pressing an up/down arrow key. The user may
navigate back to menu bar 810 by, for example, pressing a left
arrow key. In some implementations, menu bar 810 and submenu bar
820 may be displayed along the top or bottom of the screen. In such
circumstances, the user may navigate to items within one of the
menu bars by pressing a right/left arrow key and may navigate to
and from the menu bars by pressing an up/down arrow key.
[0151] In some implementations, media guidance objects may each
correspond to one or more entries in a program guide (e.g., a
television program guide). In particular, different portions of the
media guidance object may correspond to different available
programs that are broadcast, provided on-demand, provided over
pay-per-view sources or otherwise available during a particular
time interval. Selection of program guide item 830 may cause
processing circuitry 306 to display a program schedule information
having perspective views. In particular, selection of program guide
item 830 may cause processing circuitry 306 to display, in
different perspectives, media guidance objects that correspond to
program scheduling information.
[0152] FIG. 9 shows an illustrative display screen 900 of program
scheduling information displayed in different perspectives in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular,
screen 900 illustrates the implementation where the media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screens 500a-c represent
program scheduling information. For example, screen 900 may include
program source information region 950 displayed in a first
perspective view, program schedule information region associated
with a first time interval 910 displayed in a second perspective
view and program schedule information region associated with second
and third time intervals 920 and 930 displayed in a third
perspective view. Program source information region 950 may
correspond to first media guidance object 514a, program schedule
information region (e.g., program listings display region)
associated with the first time interval 910 may correspond to
second media guidance object 510a, program schedule information
region (e.g., program listings) associated with the second time
interval 920 may correspond to third media guidance object 512a,
and program schedule information region (e.g., program listings)
associated with the third time interval 930 may correspond to
fourth media guidance object 516a (FIG. 5a).
[0153] Program source information region 950 may include text
(e.g., source name), icons (e.g., source logo), or any other visual
indicator that is unique to a particular program source that allows
the user to associate the program source information with the
program source of the programs. Program sources may include any
television channels, Internet websites (e.g., HULU.com), user
devices, servers, or any other delivery source or device of media
assets. In some embodiments, the program sources may be television
channels that are provided by cable or satellite or some other
transmission source. In particular, some of the program sources
that are television channels may be provided by a first
transmission source having a first transmission scheme (e.g.,
satellite) and some of the program sources that are television
channels may be provided by a second transmission source having a
second transmission scheme that is different from the first
transmission scheme (e.g., cable). An identifier may be included in
the program source information region 950 with each program source
to indicate the transmission source of the program source.
[0154] Although the program source and scheduling information is
shown as a full screen display, program source and scheduling
information may be displayed in any differently sized smaller
portions of the screen.
[0155] When the user first enters screen 900, processing circuitry
306 may highlight or bring into focus the program listings
corresponding to the currently tuned program or program being
currently accessed. The currently tuned or accessed program may
also be displayed behind the program schedule information. In
particular, program schedule information displayed in screen 900
may be partially transparent such that both the program schedule
information and the currently tuned to or accessed program can be
seen simultaneously. Information about the currently tuned to or
accessed program may also be displayed at, for example, the bottom
of the screen. The information may include the title or name of the
program or media asset being accessed, the program source of the
program or media asset and a short description of the program or
media asset.
[0156] The user may navigate within portions of the media guidance
objects to select a desired program listing corresponding to a
media asset. For example, the user may navigate up/down within
program source information region 950 to select a desired program
source. The program source information (e.g., channel indicators)
displayed within program source information region 950 may appear
similar to the manner in which items within menu bar 740 are
displayed (FIG. 7). In particular, program sources that are not in
focus and that are further away from the program source in focus
may be displayed as text or information that is gradually smaller
in size than the text or information that is displayed for the
program source in focus. Alternative, program sources that are not
in focus and that are further away from the program source in focus
may be displayed as text or information that is gradually
decreasing in brightness (or less bright) (e.g., with a fading
effect) than the brightness of the text or information that is
displayed for the program source in focus.
[0157] Program listings associated with the selected program source
or the program source that is in focus (e.g., program listings of
media assets provided by the selected program source) may be
displayed adjacent to the selected program source in a different
perspective from the program source. In particular, program
listings associated with the selected source may be displayed more
prominently than the program listings associated with a different
program source. For example, when program source (e.g., NBC) is
selected, program listings provided by the program source may be
displayed in an expanded view to provide more information than the
displayed program listings associated with another program
source.
[0158] In some implementations, the program listings associated
with a selected program source may include the display of a video,
picture, icons, textual descriptions, runtime, broadcast time,
episode information or other data in addition to the title of a
particular media asset corresponding to the program listing. In
particular, while program listings associated with program sources
that are not in focus may only display titles of media assets
associated with the program listings, program listings associated
with the selected program source may include the display of a
video, icons, textual descriptions, runtime, broadcast time,
episode information or other data in addition to the title of a
particular media asset corresponding to the program listing. In
some embodiments, the displayed video may be a promotional clip,
advertisement or other information associated with the media asset
corresponding to the program listing.
[0159] In some implementations, only one program listing
corresponding to the selected program source is displayed in the
second perspective view while the other program listings
corresponding to the selected program source (i.e., the program
source in focus) are displayed in the third perspective view. It
should be understood, however, that more than one program listing
corresponding to the selected program source may be displayed in
the second perspective view and the user may navigate to and select
the desired program listing.
[0160] In some embodiments, all the program listings displayed in
the second perspective view correspond to media assets that are
broadcast during a particular time interval. For example, all the
program listings displayed in the second perspective may be
associated with media assets that are broadcast between 4-5 PM. The
program listings displayed in the second perspective view may
correspond to any range of time intervals (e.g., one hour,
half-hour or any other range). In particular, although the time
interval range shown in FIG. 9 is one hour long, any other length
may be provided. In some implementations, the program schedule may
display a title, video and/or other program identification
information of each program broadcast on the television channels or
program sources for each time interval that is displayed in the
program schedule during which the corresponding program is
broadcast.
[0161] In some implementations, some of the program listings
displayed in the second or third perspective views may correspond
to video-on-demand media assets or previously recorded media
assets. In such scenarios, the program listings corresponding to
on-demand media may appear through the entire row corresponding to
a particular on-demand source. In particular, the display of
on-demand media program listings may not be dependent upon time
intervals. In some implementations, program sources may represent
different genre categories (e.g., comedy or drama). In such
circumstances, program listings displayed adjacent to a particular
program source that represents a genre category may correspond to
media assets that are related to that particular genre category.
These program listings may or may not organized according to time
intervals depending on whether the program listings correspond to
on-demand media or not.
[0162] More than one program listing may be displayed in any
particular time interval for a particular program source, when the
length of the media assets corresponding to the given time interval
is shorter than the length of the time interval. For example, when
the time interval length is one hour and program listings
correspond to a show that has a half-hour run time (e.g., Judge
Judy), more than one program listing may be displayed in the second
perspective view for that time interval. More specifically, program
schedule information region associated with a first time interval
910 (e.g., time interval of 4-5 PM) displayed in a second
perspective view may include two program listings for the program
source FOX. This may be because each of the two program listings is
associated with a media asset, Judge Judy, that has a half-hour run
time (e.g., a run-time that is half of the length of time interval
910).
[0163] Each program schedule information region may display
information (e.g., titles) of media assets that are scheduled for a
particular time interval. For example, program schedule information
region associated with first time interval 910 may display the
titles of programs that are broadcast between 4-5 PM, program
schedule information region associated with second time interval
920 may display the titles of programs that are broadcast between
5-6PM and program schedule information region associated with third
time interval 930 may display the titles of programs that are
broadcast between 6-7PM. Each of the program schedule information
regions may be displayed adjacent to each other in an ordered
manner based on the time interval to which they correspond.
[0164] The program listing information (e.g., titles, video, icon,
image, caption) displayed within each program listing in the
program schedule information regions may appear similar to the
manner in which items within menu bar 740 are displayed (FIG. 7).
In particular, the information displayed in program listings that
are not in focus and that are further away from the program listing
in focus may be displayed as text or information that is gradually
smaller in size than the text or information that is displayed for
the program listing in focus. Alternatively, information displayed
in program listings that are not in focus and that are further away
from the program listing in focus may be displayed as text or
information that is gradually decreasing in brightness (or less
bright) (e.g., with a fading effect) than the brightness of the
text or information that is displayed for the program listing in
focus.
[0165] The user may press a right/left arrow key to browse through
program listings in the time domain. For example, the user may
press the right arrow key to bring into focus program listings that
correspond to media assets that are broadcast later in time that
are provided on the same program source. Similarly, the user may
press the left arrow key to bring into focus program listings that
correspond to media assets that are broadcast earlier in time that
are provided on the same program source in focus. The user may
select program listings that are displayed in program schedule
information regions in the third perspective by sliding the program
listings from the third perspective into the second perspective.
For example, as discussed above in connection with FIGS. 5a-c, the
user may press a right arrow key while viewing program listing 912
(that is displayed in the second perspective view) to cause program
listing 922 that is displayed in the third perspective view to
slide through a fold or crease (e.g., between the time interval in
focus and later time intervals) into the second perspective view.
Program listing 912 may be removed from the second perspective view
to make room for program listing 922 in the second perspective
view. It should be understood that program sources displayed in the
first perspective view may be static such that as the program
listings from later or earlier time intervals are brought into
focus (by sliding or jumping), the program source information
remains stationary in the display. The user may also select an
option to hide the program source information and as a result,
processing circuitry may generate the display of program listings
corresponding to one time interval (e.g., the present time)
displayed in a first perspective view and program listings
corresponding to later time intervals displayed in a second
perspective view without having the program source information
region occupy space on the display screen.
[0166] The user may press up/down arrow keys to navigate to
different program listings that are displayed within a program
schedule information region that correspond to different program
sources. In particular, as the user presses up/down arrow keys,
program listings associated with different program sources may be
brought into focus (e.g., presented in an expanded view). As the
user navigates to the different program listings in the same
program schedule information region, the program listings may be
shifted down such that the program listings in focus that are
displayed in the expanded view (where videos, icons and other
program information is provided) are always in the same position
(e.g., the center) of the screen. Alternatively, a cursor may be
displayed that appears to move up/down through the program listings
to allow the user to view and navigate to the program listings in
another portion of the program schedule information region. In
particular, the expanded view of the program information may appear
to move up/down in the screen instead of remaining in the same
location. To put it another way, the program listings that are in
focus may move relative to the cursor (e.g., a highlight region
indicating a selection of a program listing) or the cursor may move
relative to the program listings.
[0167] As shown in screen 900, program information may appear as a
continuous array 952 that includes the program source information
displayed in a first perspective and the program schedule
information displayed in second and third perspective views. The
continuous array may appear to have a first fold between the
program source information and the program schedule information
region associated with first time interval 910. The continuous
array may appear to have a second fold between program schedule
information region associated with first time interval 910 and
program schedule information region associated with second time
interval 920.
[0168] The user may bring a desired program listing into focus by
sliding the immediately adjacent program listings to the program
listing in focus through the second fold into the second
perspective view from the third perspective. The user may
continuously cause the immediately adjacent program listings from
the third perspective view to slide into focus until the desired
program listing is in focus in the second perspective view. In some
implementations, the user may bring into focus the desired program
listing by instantaneously causing the immediately adjacent program
listing from the third perspective view into the second perspective
view. Alternatively, the user may navigate to a desired program
listing by moving a cursor through and within the perspective
views. For example, the user may move a cursor positioned over a
program listing displayed in the second perspective view towards
any of the program listings displayed in the third perspective
view. Once a desired program listing is highlighted or selected,
the user may perform a function for the media asset corresponding
to the selected program listing by, for example, pressing a
"confirm" key or other suitable key or indicate a confirm action
verbally. The function performed may be tuning, scheduling for
recording, setting a reminder, ordering, viewing detailed
information, adding to playlist or any other suitable function.
[0169] Any of the navigation techniques using directional arrow and
action keys (e.g., up/down/left/right and confirm/enter), discussed
above and below, may be substituted or supplemented by suitable
verbal commands that are interpreted to perform the same actions or
cause the same respective set of instructions to be executed.
Similarly, the navigation techniques may be substituted or
supplemented by, for example, a laser pointing or motion sensitive
device that is interpreted to perform the same actions or cause the
same respective set of instructions to be executed.
[0170] FIG. 10 shows an illustrative display screen 1000 of
functions corresponding to a selected program listing displayed
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Screen 1000 may
include a functions menu bar 1010, function options region 1020 and
a media region 1030.
[0171] Functions menu bar 1010 may display of list of indicators of
functions associated with the media asset corresponding to the
program listing selected from screen 900 (FIG. 9) or a media asset
selected in accordance with other embodiments of the invention.
Some of the functions that may be associated with a particular
media asset may include requests for reviews, a list of the cast
members, list of similar media assets, broadcast or schedule
information of the media asset (which may include other air times
of the media asset), a list of all episodes of the media asset,
detailed description of the media asset, watch or access the media
asset, set or schedule reminders for the media asset, schedule a
recording for the media asset, provide a rating for the media
asset.
[0172] Functions menu bar 1010 may display the list of functions in
perspective relative to each other as shown and described above in
connection with menu bars 810 and 820 (FIG. 8). For example,
indicators that identify each of the functions in functions menu
bar 1010 may be displayed in a way that indicators that are further
away from the indicator in focus appear smaller or are more faded
than the indicator in focus. In particular, the function indicator
in focus may be "cast" 1012 and may have a first size. The
indicator of a function that is not in focus may be "rate" 1014
which may have a second size that is different than the first size
of the indicator of function "cast" 1012.
[0173] The indicators of functions displayed in functions menu bar
1010 may be brought into focus or selected by pressing an up/down
key. It should be understood, that functions menu bar 1010 may be
displayed horizontally on the screen (instead of vertically as
shown). In such a scenario, functions may be brought into focus or
selected by pressing right/left arrow keys.
[0174] Media region 1030 may provide a display of an advertisement,
a video, a clip, the currently tuned television program, icon,
image, text or any other suitable media. For example, media region
1030 may provide a video clip or textual description of the media
asset corresponding to the program listing selected from screen 900
(FIG. 9) or a media asset selected in accordance with other
embodiments of the invention. Media region 1030 may also be
selectable (e.g., using a movable cursor or highlight region). In
particular, when an advertisement is displayed in media region
1030, the user may position or otherwise select the advertisement.
As a result of receiving a user selection of the advertisement, the
user may be provided with options to place an order for an
advertised product (e.g., pay-per-view media asset or some other
tangible item), view or access content related to the
advertisement.
[0175] Function options region 1020 may display a list of options
or items relating to the indicator of the function in focus in
functions menu bar 1010. As the user brings different indicators
into focus, the list of options or items displayed in function
options region 1020 may change to correspond to the indicator of
the function in focus. In particular, the list of options or items
displayed in function options region 1020 may change or be updated
as each indicator of the function is brought into focus.
[0176] For example, when the "cast" function indicator is in focus
and the user desires to bring the "detailed description" function
indicator into focus which may be, for example, three indicators
away from the "cast" function indicator, the list of options or
items displayed in function options region 1020 may change three
times. In particular, to bring the "detailed description" function
into focus, the user may press an up arrow key three times. As each
of the function indicators between the "cast" function and
"detailed description function" is brought into focus, the list of
options or items displayed in function options region 1020 may
change. In particular, the first time the up arrow key is pressed,
the list of options or items displayed in function options region
1020 may change to display options corresponding to "similar
assets" function indicator, the second time, the list of options or
items displayed in function options region 1020 may change to
display options corresponding to "all episodes" function indicator
and the third time, the list of options or items displayed in
function options region 1020 may change to display options or items
corresponding to "detailed description" function indicator.
[0177] For the sake of brevity, the discussion of the options or
items provided in function options region 1020 is based on having
the request for cast members function selected or placed in focus.
However, any other function in functions menu bar 1010 may be
selected in a similar manner (e.g., by placing the function focus
or selecting the function with a moveable cursor or highlight
region) and as a result the list displayed in function options
region 1020 may be tailored to the particular function in
focus.
[0178] Options or items provided in function options region 1020
when the "cast" function indicator is in focus may include a
selectable list of all or most of the cast members that are present
in the media asset corresponding to the selected program listing.
For example, when the media asset corresponding to the program
listing is "Heroes," a list of the cast members in Heroes may be
displayed. The options or items that are provided in function
options region 1020 may either be retrieved from local storage or
from a remote server or website (e.g., via the Internet). For
example, the list of cast members in the Heroes media asset may be
retrieved from a local database that includes information about
some or all of the media assets provided by a certain program
source.
[0179] Alternatively, the list of cast members in the Heroes media
asset may be retrieved from a remote server by accessing a link
associated with the "cast" function indicator. For example, one or
more of the function indicators may be associated with a link to
the information for the options to provide in region 1020. As the
user browses the different function indicators in bar 1010, the
links associated with the functions may be accessed to retrieve the
necessary information. In some embodiments, the links may be
accessed before the user brings a particular function indicator
into focus (e.g., the information may be pre-cached) to reduce any
possible latency in the display of information in region 1020. This
may allow the user to seamlessly browse for information associated
with a selected media asset.
[0180] The items or options displayed in the list in region 1020
may be selected. For example, the user may select one of the cast
member indicators (e.g., names or pictures) that is displayed in
the list by, for example, pressing up/down arrow keys to position a
highlight region 1022 over the desired cast member. The user may
press an "enter" or "confirm" key to receive a display of
information about the selected cast member. For example, the user
may highlight or select the actor "Milo Ventimiglia" and as a
result a display of information about that actor may be provided as
shown in screen 1100 (FIG. 11).
[0181] In some embodiments, the information about the selected
option or item may be provided in media region 1030. In some
embodiments, media region 1030 may provide help information about
the selected function indicator or informing the user about how to
navigate between the different function indicators. The help
information may also inform the user about the various options
provided in region 1020.
[0182] In some embodiments, the options or items displayed in
region 1020 when set reminder function is selected may allow the
user to select when and/or where the reminder is provided. For
example, the user may select an option or item to have the reminder
provided five minutes before the media asset becomes available.
Additionally, the user may select an option to provide the reminder
for the media asset on another remote device (e.g., a mobile
device) and to allow the user to access or record the media asset
on the mobile device. Similarly, the options or items displayed in
region 1020 when schedule recording function is selected (not
shown) may allow the user to select when and/or where the media
asset is to be recorded.
[0183] FIG. 11 shows an illustrative display screen 1100 of
information corresponding to an option or item selected from region
1020 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Screen 1100
may include a hierarchy of identifiers 1110, an information region
1120 and media region 1030.
[0184] The identifiers displayed in hierarchy of identifiers 1110
may correspond to previously selected items that are associated
with a media asset. For example, as the user selects (or confirms
selections) of items from previous menus, an identifier may be
added to hierarchy of identifiers 1110 to remind the user of the
previous selections. In particular, the user may first have
selected a program listing corresponding to the media asset
"Heroes." Accordingly, the first identifier 1114 in hierarchy of
identifiers 1110 may identify the selection of the media asset
"Heroes" by providing a picture, video, text or other information
that identifies that media asset to the user. After the user
selected the media asset, the user may have selected an item
corresponding to a function from functions menu bar 1010 (FIG. 10)
that provided a list of cast members. Accordingly, the second
identifier 1112 in hierarchy of identifiers 1110 may identify the
function "cast" from which the item selection was made by providing
a picture, video, text or other information that identifies that
function selection to the user. Second identifier 1112 may be
displayed adjacent to and/or under first identifier 1114 of the
first selection of the media asset.
[0185] The user may browse through prior selections in the
hierarchy by, for example, pressing a left arrow key. For example,
when "cast" is identified at the bottom of the hierarchy
(indicating that items associated with the cast function where last
displayed in region 1120), the user may press a left arrow key and
as a result, the items associated with the cast function may be
displayed in region 1120 in the same manner as shown in region 1020
(FIG. 10). Second identifier 1112 for the cast function may be
removed from the hierarchy. A subsequent selection of the left
arrow key may bring up a display in region 1120 of information
corresponding to the selected media asset since as first identifier
1114 in the hierarchy may indicate a media asset selection. In some
implementations, when only one identifier remains in the hierarchy,
the identifier may be omitted from the display and information
associated with that identifier may be indicated in region 1020.
For example, the only identifier that remains in the hierarchy when
the user presses the left arrow key may be the identifier that
identifies a media asset. Additionally, the information displayed
in region 1020 may include items of information corresponding to
the cast as well as information indicating the media asset in which
the cast is featured.
[0186] Information about the selected item from the items displayed
in region 1020 may be displayed in region 1120. For example, when
the actor (e.g., Milo Ventimiglia) is the item that is selected
from the items corresponding to the "cast" function indicator,
information about the actor may be displayed in region 1120. The
information may include a picture of the actor, a short description
about the actor and other media assets which feature the selected
actor. The information may be retrieved from local storage or from
a website or remote source via the Internet.
[0187] The user may navigate between the items of information
displayed in region 1120 by, for example, pressing an up/down arrow
key. Once an item of information is identified with a highlight
region or with a movable cursor, the user may confirm the selection
to receive information about the selected item of information. For
example, when the selected item of information displayed in region
1120 is other media assets in which the actor was featured,
information about the media asset may be provided as shown in
screen 1200 (FIG. 12).
[0188] For example, as shown in screen 1200, hierarchy of
identifiers 1110 has been updated to include an identifier of the
item (e.g., Milo Ventimiglia) corresponding to the menu from which
the last selection was made at the bottom of the hierarchy. In
particular, screen 1200 includes a hierarchy of identifiers 1210
with a first identifier 1216 at the top of the hierarchy that may
identify a similar selection as identifier 1114 (FIG. 11), a second
identifier 1214 in the middle of the hierarchy that may identify a
similar selection as identifier 1112 and a third identifier 1212 at
the bottom of the hierarchy that identifies the item corresponding
to the selection made from the information menu associated with the
actor "Milo Ventimiglia."
[0189] Information region 1220 may provide a display of information
corresponding to the item selected from region 1120 (FIG. 11). For
example, when the item selected from region 1120 is a media asset
which featured the selected actor, a clip 1222 associated with that
media asset may be displayed. Detailed information 1224 about the
media asset may also be provided in information region 1220.
[0190] An functions menu bar may be provided to allow the user to
select amongst various functions corresponding to the media asset
that is identified in region 1120. The functions menu bar may
provide the same functionality and function indicators as functions
menu bar 1010 (FIG. 10). For example, the user may select a "Watch"
function to access the media asset. Additionally, when the user
selects a particular function, an identifier is added to the bottom
of hierarchy 1210 identifying the media asset associated with the
selected function. Items or options associated with the selected
function may be displayed adjacent to hierarchy 1210 as shown in
FIGS. 10 and 11.
[0191] Referring back to FIG. 8, the user may select an option to
search program listings from submenu bar 820. A display screen may
be provided for the user to search locally or remote (e.g., the
Internet) using perspective views for program listings or
particular media assets of interest to the user.
[0192] FIG. 13 shows an illustrative display screen 1300 of a
search function that allows the user to search for media assets in
different perspective views in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention. In particular, screen 1300 illustrates the
implementation where the media guidance objects discussed in
connection with screens 500a-c are search function objects and
media asset representations. For example, screen 1300 may include a
visual keypad 1340, a saved searches region 1310 and a media asset
results region 1320.
[0193] Visual keypad 1340 may be displayed in a first perspective
view, saved searches region 1310 may be displayed in a second
perspective view and media asset results region 1320 may be
displayed in a third perspective view. Visual keypad 1340 may
correspond to first media guidance object 514a (FIG. 5a), saved
searches region 1310 may correspond to second media guidance object
510a, a first media asset representation 1322 provided in media
asset results region 1320 may correspond to third media guidance
object 512a and a second media asset representation provided in
media asset results region 1320 may correspond to fourth media
guidance object 516a. It should be understood that visual keypad
1340, saved searches region 1310 and media asset representations in
media asset results region 1320 may correspond respectively to any
of first media guidance object 514a, second media guidance object
510a and third media guidance object 512a such that each is
displayed in a perspective view different from what is shown in
screen 1300.
[0194] In some implementations, visual keypad 1340 may be
statically displayed in the first perspective view. In particular,
the user may navigate through the media asset representations
provided in media asset results region 1320 by sliding different
media asset representations into focus. Visual keypad 1340 may
remain statically displayed relative to the media asset
representations that slide into focus. In some implementations,
visual keypad 1340 may be moved by the user to another section of
the display or a different perspective view that may be more
convenient to use. In some implementations, visual keypad 1340 may
be removed from the display to make more room for displaying the
search results and search listings. In particular, visual keypad
1340 may be manually removed (e.g., by pressing a suitable key) or
automatically removed when a search has been executed. When visual
keypad 1340 is removed from the display, saved searches region 1310
may be displayed in the perspective view where visual keypad 1340
was displayed and saved searches region 1310 may be displayed in
the perspective view where media asset results region 1320 was
displayed. Visual keypad 1340 may be re-displayed to execute a new
search when the user instructs processing circuitry 306 by pressing
a suitable key. When visual keypad 1340 is re-displayed, the
display may be rearranged to appear as the one shown in screen 1300
with visual keypad 1340 in the first perspective view, saved
searches region 1310 displayed in the second perspective view and
media asset results region 1320 displayed in the third perspective
view.
[0195] As discussed above, each media asset representation
displayed in media asset results region 1320 may be a photograph, a
video, an icon, a sketch, or any other visual indicator that is
unique to a particular media asset that allows the user to
associate the particular media asset representation with the media
asset. For example, a picture of the label of a movie (e.g., Casino
Royale) may be displayed as the media asset representation
indicating to the user that the media asset representation is
associated with the movie Casino Royale. Each media asset
representation may also include text identifying the media asset
associated with the media asset representation. The text may be a
title of the media asset, a short description, a custom description
provided by the user or any other suitable information that is
unique to the media asset. Selection of the media asset
representation (as discussed above) may instruct processing
circuitry 306 to playback, order or access the media asset
associated with the media asset representation on user equipment
device 300.
[0196] Visual keypad 1340, saved searches region 1310 and media
asset results region 1320 from each of the different perspective
views may be adjacent to each other at the edges. For example, a
right edge of visual keypad 1340 may be adjacent to a left edge of
saved searches region 1310 and a right edge of saved searches
region 1310 may be adjacent to left edge of a first media asset
representation displayed in media asset results region 1320.
Connecting the visual keypad 1340, saved searches region 1310 and
media asset results region 1320 from each of the different
perspective views at the points of adjacency creates the appearance
of a continuous array of search application objects. The continuous
array of search application objects may appear to have folds at the
points of adjacency.
[0197] Saved searches region 1310 may display search listings 1330
that identify to a user searches that were previously executed by
the user. For example, search listings 1330 may include the display
of one or more criteria elements 1312 (e.g., titles, air times,
channels, etc.) that were used to execute a particular search. In
particular, the user may have previously executed a search for
media assets based on textual criteria. For example, the user may
have entered the text "007" and as a result the processing
circuitry 306 may have searched local program listings and/or an
external source (e.g., the Internet) for media assets that are
associated with the text "007". The media assets that may have been
associated with the text 007 may be any James Bond media asset
(e.g., shows, movies, games, etc.). Similarly, alternatively or in
addition to the text entered, the user may have input as the
criteria a particular title of a media asset. For example, the user
may have entered the title "Batman" and processing circuitry 306
may have searched for media assets having the title "Batman".
[0198] Search listings 1330 may include a time and/or date stamp
1316 to remind or indicate to the user when the search was
executed. This way the user may know whether the search is outdated
(e.g., because the user may know of media assets that have been
released after the time and/or date stamp) or is up-to-date. Search
listings 1330 may include a results representation 1314 that
indicates how may media assets matched the given search criteria
element 1312. Results representation may be, for example, a
number.
[0199] The order of the search listings 1330 displayed in saved
searches region 1310 may be based on an alphabetical arrangement of
the criteria elements 1312, a date/time stamp 1316 or any other
suitable order. For example, search listing 1330 that is associated
with a most recently executed search may be displayed closer to the
top portion of saved searches region 1310 while search listing 1330
that is associated with a least recently (e.g., oldest) executed
search may be displayed closer to the bottom portion of saved
searches region 1310. Search listings 1330 that are associated with
searches performed between the most recently and least recently
executed searches may be displayed in a similar manner between the
search listings associated with the most and least recently
executed searches. Search listings 1330 may be similarly arranged
based on the alphabetical arrangement of the search criteria 1312
where the search listing with search criteria that comes earlier in
the alphabet is displayed on top of search listings with search
criteria that come later in the alphabet.
[0200] The user may navigate among the search listings 1330 to
select one of the search listings.
[0201] The user may navigate among the search listings 1330 by, for
example, pressing up/down arrow keys to position a highlight region
or cursor over search listing 1330 of interest. In some
implementations, as the user navigates from one search listing to
another (e.g., as different search listings 1330 are brought into
focus), the search results (e.g., media asset representations)
displayed in media asset results region 1320 associated with that
previously executed search listing 1330 which is brought into
focus, may be displayed. For example, when the user navigates
between two search listings 1330 that are separated in saved
searches region 1310 by two other search listings 1330, the media
asset representations displayed in media search results region 1320
may be updated or changed three times. In particular, media asset
representations displayed in media asset results region 1320, may
be updated each time the user navigates to a different search
listing 1330 bringing the search listing into focus to reach a
desired search listing 1330. The media asset representations
displayed in media asset results region 1320 may be displayed in a
different perspective view than the perspective view of the search
listings 1330.
[0202] The search results or media asset representations associated
with each search listing 1330 may be stored in a database as links
to the media assets corresponding to the media asset
representations. In particular, after a search is executed, the
user may select an option to save the search and may in some
implementations provide a title for the search. Processing
circuitry 306 may add an entry to a database with the named search
and all the results that are associated with that search. The
results may be added to the entry as links or some other identifier
that allows processing circuitry 306 to identify the media asset
associated with the saved search without re-executing (or executed
again) the search.
[0203] The user may be provided with the option to delete or remove
any of search listings 1330 that are stored in the database. For
example, as the user navigates a cursor to a search listing of
interest, the user may press a delete key or remove key. As a
result, processing circuitry 306 may remove the entry associated
with the search listing from the database. The user may thereafter
no longer view media assets associated with that search listing and
that search listing may be removed from the saved searches region
1310. A confirmation screen (not shown) may be provided to allow
the user to confirm whether he/she wants to delete or remove the
particular search listing before the search listing is permanently
removed. For example, after the user presses a remove or delete key
for a particular search listing, processing circuitry 306 may
generate a display of a confirmation screen. The confirmation
screen may have a "confirm" option and a "cancel" option. The user
may select the confirm option to permanently delete the search
listing and the cancel option to cancel the delete operation. The
order of the remaining search listings 1330 may be updated as a
result of the user removing or deleting a particular search listing
1330.
[0204] From saved searches region 1310, the user may navigate
between different media asset representations displayed in media
asset results region 1320 by, for example, pressing a right arrow
key to highlight or position a cursor over a media asset
representation of interest to bring the media asset representation
into focus. Media asset representations displayed in media asset
results region 1320 that appear further away from the media asset
representation in focus may be shifted closer in the same
perspective view as the user, for example, presses the right arrow
key or some other key that instructs processing circuitry 306 to
bring into focus media asset representations that appear further in
the perspective view. As media asset representations that are
further away in the perspective view are brought into focus (e.g.,
made to appear larger and larger in the perspective view), the
media asset representation that is closest in the perspective view
(e.g., the media asset representation in focus) may be removed from
the display.
[0205] For example, media asset representation 1322 (e.g., Quantum
of Solace) may be the closest media asset representation (e.g., the
media asset representation in focus), and accordingly when the user
presses, for example, the right arrow key or some other key to
bring into focus media asset representations that are further away
(e.g., Casino Royale), media asset representation 1322 may be
removed to make room in the display. This is different from earlier
embodiments where media guidance objects that are in the third
perspective slide into the second perspective to be brought into
focus for selection, as discussed in connection with FIGS. 5b, 6
and 9. Alternatively, the user my position a moveable cursor (e.g.,
a mouse) over the media asset representation of interest thereby
preventing the closest media asset representation from being
removed in order to select a media asset representation that is
further in the perspective view.
[0206] When the user selects a particular media asset
representation (e.g., by pressing a confirm or enter key while a
cursor is positioned over the desired media asset representation),
processing circuitry 306 may allow the user to view details, access
or order the media asset associated with the media asset
representation. For example, processing circuitry 306 may navigate
the user to screen 1000 (FIG. 10) with information corresponding to
the media asset associated with the selected media asset
representation. As discussed above, from screen 1000, the user may
select various functions from menu 1010 to access, set reminders,
schedule a recording, order, get detailed information, view cast
members, etc. for the selected media asset.
[0207] From saved searches region 1310, the user may navigate from
saved searches region 1310 to visual keypad 1340 to execute a new
search by, for example, pressing a left arrow key. The user may
select between various numerical and alphanumerical symbols to
identify criteria which processing circuitry 306 may use to execute
a search for media assets. Visual keypads are discussed in greater
detail in Brian Peterson U.S. patent application Ser. No.
12,466,585, filed May 15, 2009, which is incorporated by reference
herein in its entirety.
[0208] FIG. 14 shows an illustrative display screen 1400 of a
search operation that allows the user to search for media assets in
different perspective views in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention. Screen 1400 may include visual keypad 1340, media asset
search results region 1410 and related media assets region 1450. As
shown above in screen 1500, visual keypad 1340 may be displayed in
a first perspective view as one media guidance object, media asset
search results region 1410 may be displayed in a second perspective
view as a second media guidance object and related media assets
region 1450 may be displayed in a third perspective view as a
fourth media guidance object or objects. The objects from each of
the different perspective views may be adjacent to each other where
the points of adjacency are at the edges of the media guidance
objects.
[0209] The user may position a cursor or focus region within visual
keypad 1340 to select (e.g., by pressing a "confirm" or "enter"
key) a character provided in visual keypad 1340. The character that
is selected may be used to perform the search for media assets. In
some implementations, the results corresponding to the search
string may be presented in media asset search results region 1410
as the user selects different characters of the search string. For
example, the user may wish to search for media assets having a
title attribute that begins with the search string "BAT".
Accordingly, the user may first select the `B` character and media
asset representations 1440 and 1420 that correspond to media assets
that have titles that begin with the letter `B` may be displayed in
media asset search results region 1410. When the user selects the
second letter of the search string (e.g., `A`), media asset
representation 1420 that are displayed in media asset search
results region 1410 may change to correspond to media assets that
have titles that begin with the letters "BA". In some
implementations, the user may instruct processing circuitry 306 to
only perform the search once the entire desired search string is
provided through 1340.
[0210] As discussed above, the media asset representations
displayed in media asset results region 1410 identify to the user
the media assets that match a given search string provided through
visual keypad 1340. The media asset representations displayed in
media asset results region 1410 may be displayed in perspective
relative to each other. In particular, the media asset
representations may be displayed in a similar manner as items in
menu region 1010 (FIG. 10). Media asset representation 1440 that is
shown to be further away from the media asset representation 1420
that is in focus may appear smaller than media asset representation
1420. More specifically, the media asset representations that are
further away (e.g., require more presses of a direction arrow key
to be placed in focus) may appear gradually smaller in size.
[0211] The user may select which attribute processing circuitry 306
should search through when searching for media assets by selecting
one or more of the attributes 1460. Attributes 1460 may be
displayed in the same or different perspective as visual keypad
1340. Also, attributes 1460 may be displayed adjacent visual keypad
1340 and media assets results region 1410 or at any other suitable
location on the display screen. Attributes 1460 may also be omitted
entirely from the display and processing circuitry 306 may use a
default attribute (e.g., title) to perform the search for media
assets.
[0212] Attributes 1460 may include a television program attribute,
an on-demand program attribute, my movies attribute, title, rating,
detailed description, commentary, subject matter or any other
suitable attribute that can be used to narrow or widen (based on
whether the attribute is selected) the scope of media assets
through which to search. For example, selection of the television
program attribute, may instruct processing circuitry 306 to include
television programs in the search for media assets. On the other
hand, when the television program attribute is not selected,
processing circuitry 306 may exclude from the search media assets
that are television programs. Attributes 1460 may also instruct
processing circuitry 306 where to search for media assets that
match the search string. For example, attributes 1460 may include a
local search attribute which, when selected, may cause processing
circuitry 306 to search locally stored data and/or a remote search
attribute which, when selected, may cause processing circuitry 306
to search remotely stored data (e.g., via the Internet).
[0213] In some implementations, processing circuitry 306 may search
locally stored data. Alternatively or in addition, processing
circuitry 306 may search a remote database via, for example, a
network or the Internet. For example, processing circuitry 306 may
receive the search string and transmit the search string through a
search engine website (e.g., GOOGLE.COM or TVGUIDE.COM) to receive
matching media assets.
[0214] When attributes 1460 are displayed under visual keypad 1340
in the same perspective view, the user may select between various
attributes by, for example, pressing a down arrow key to move the
focus region away from visual keypad 1340 and towards attributes
1460.
[0215] Related media assets region 1450 may display a row 1430 of
media asset representations that share attributes with each media
asset that is represented in media asset search results region
1410. Each row 1430 may include multiple media asset
representations 1442 and 1444 where each media asset representation
shares an attribute with the media asset representation in media
asset results region 1410 that is next to the row. In particular,
row 1430 may include multiple media asset representations and may
be displayed next to media asset representation 1420. Similarly,
row 1432 may include multiple media asset representations and may
be displayed next to media asset representation 1440.
[0216] Each row may be sized to conform to the size of the media
asset representation that corresponds to the row. For example, row
1432 may include media asset representations that have a size that
is substantially identical or similar to the size of media asset
representation 1440. This aids the user in identifying which row
corresponds to which media asset representation displayed in media
asset results region 1410. More specifically, the media asset
representations that are displayed in media asset results region
1410 may be displayed in perspective to one another (as discussed
above) and similarly, the media asset representations in each of
rows 1432 and 1430 may be displayed in perspective to each other.
In particular, the media assets displayed in row 1432 may be
further away from row 1430 corresponding to the media asset
representation 1420 in focus and thereby may be smaller in size
than the media asset representations in row 1430.
[0217] In some implementations, related media assets region 1450
may only display a single row of media asset representations 1430
that share attributes with only the media asset that is represented
by the media asset representation in focus. In such scenarios, the
single row of related media asset representations may appear as
media asset results region 1320 (FIG. 13). In particular, when
multiple rows are displayed, each of the media asset
representations may be smaller in size to allow for the larger
number of media asset representations to be displayed. Whereas,
when only one row is displayed, a larger portion of the screen may
be apportioned for displaying the row of media asset
representations.
[0218] As discussed above, as the user changes the search criteria
(e.g., by adding more characters to the search string), the media
asset representations displayed in media asset results region 1410
also change. Accordingly, the media asset representations displayed
in the rows corresponding to the media asset representations
displayed in media asset results region 1410 may also change with
each change in search criteria.
[0219] The rows of media asset representations may be related to
the media assets represented by the media asset representations in
media asset results region 1410 by an attribute the user selected
to search media assets (e.g., title) and by at least one other
attribute. For example, all the media asset representations in row
1430 may be part of a series (e.g., episodes or volumes) of media
assets associated with the media asset representation 1420. In
particular, media asset representation 1420 may correspond to the
movie "Batman" or a latest one of the series of movies of "Batman"
and each media asset representation in row 1430 may correspond to
each of the earlier series of the movie "Batman". In addition, each
of the media asset representations in row 1430 may have the same
characters of the search string in their title as media asset 1420
and may belong to the same category (e.g., Family movies) as media
asset 1420. One row in related media assets region 1450 may include
a different number of media asset representations than another one
of the rows. This is because there may be a different number of
media assets that are related to each different media asset
representation displayed in media asset results region 1410.
[0220] Any of the media asset representations in the rows displayed
in related media assets region 1450 or media asset results region
1410 may be selected by bringing the media asset representation
into focus. Once the desired media asset representation is brought
into focus, the user may press a "confirm" or "enter" key or other
suitable key to select the media asset corresponding to the media
asset representation. As a result of selecting a particular media
asset representation, as discussed above, the user may schedule a
recording, schedule a reminder, place an order, retrieve
information or any other function may be performed for the media
asset. In some implementations, selecting the media asset
corresponding to the media asset representation may navigate the
user to screen 1000 (FIG. 10).
[0221] Referring back to FIG. 8, the user may select an option to
access an online video vendor (e.g., Blockbuster or Netflix) from
submenu bar 820 directly or through a website. A display screen may
be provided for the user to search, order, or otherwise interact
with the online video vender using perspective views or menus and
media assets.
[0222] FIG. 15 shows an illustrative display screen 1500 of
accessing an online video vendor with perspective views in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular,
screen 1500 illustrates the implementation where the media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screens 500a-c (FIGS. 5a-c)
are media asset representations corresponding to media assets the
user may order from the online video vendor. In particular, media
asset representation 1510 displayed in a first perspective view may
correspond to media guidance object 510a and media asset
representations 1520 and 1530 displayed in a second perspective
view may correspond to media guidance objects 512a and 516a. For
example, screen 1500 may include a online video vendor menu and a
media assets region that displays media assets corresponding to the
menu option that is in focus.
[0223] The items in the online video vendor menu may be displayed
in perspective relative to one another similar to the way in which
options may be displayed in menu 740 (FIG. 7). For example, the
item that is in focus may be displayed with larger text size than
items not in focus. More specifically, the further away in the menu
that items are from the item in focus, the smaller they may appear
to be (e.g., smaller text size). As shown, item 1550 is in focus
corresponding to the menu selection of "last week top choices."
Items that are in the menu that are further away, such as "my
recommendations" appear smaller than item 1550.
[0224] The items provided in the online video vendor menu may
correspond to various options provided by the online video vendor.
For example, the items may correspond to online video vendor
options including "my instant queue," "my recommendations," "new
releases," "browse genres," "last week top choices," "search," and
"sign out."
[0225] As the user navigates between different items in the online
video vendor menu by, for example, bringing each item into focus by
pressing the up/down arrow keys, media asset representations or
other media guidance objects corresponding to the selected item may
be displayed adjacent to the online video vendor menu. The user may
interact (e.g., select, bring into focus, or provide input) with
the media asset representations or other media guidance objects
that are displayed by, for example, pressing the right/left arrow
keys.
[0226] The user may bring the item corresponding to "my instant
queue" into focus by, for example pressing up/down arrow keys.
Alternatively, the user may position a cursor over the particular
item and press a select key. Processing circuitry 306 may generate
a display of media asset representations corresponding to media
assets that are in the queue of the online video vendor adjacent to
the menu. The queue may include media assets in which the user has
an interest and requested to be checked out, mailed, delivered,
emailed or downloaded at the next available opportunity. In
particular, the user may add or remove media assets from the
queue.
[0227] The media asset representations corresponding to the "my
instant queue" menu item selection may be arranged in accordance
with their order of availability or future mailing date. For
example, media asset representation 1510, which may be displayed in
a first perspective view, may correspond to a media asset that is
to be provided to the user (by mail, email or download) next (e.g.,
when the user returns a media asset that is checked out).
Additionally, media asset representations 1520 and 1530, which may
be displayed in a second perspective view different from the first
perspective view, may correspond to media assets that are to be
provided after media asset representation 1510. In some
implementations, media asset representation 1510 which is displayed
in the first perspective view may correspond to a media asset that
is currently checked out to the user while media asset
representations 1520 and 1530 may correspond to media assets that
will be provided to the user at the next available opportunity
(e.g., when the user returns or checks-in the media asset
corresponding to media asset representation 1510).
[0228] The user may rearrange the order of the media assets in the
queue by bringing into focus one of the media asset representations
corresponding to the "my instant queue" item of the online video
vendor menu. For example, once the media asset representation of
interest is in focus, the user may press a "confirm" key and cause
that media asset representation to be moved to the front of the
queue. Alternatively, in some implementations, pressing the
"confirm" key may cause the media asset in focus to be moved to the
end of the queue. In some other embodiments, the user may press a
suitable key when a media asset representation is in focus and
indicate a number within the queue in which to place the
corresponding media asset.
[0229] As discussed above in connection with FIG. 6, each media
asset representation may include a title or other textual
identifier. In particular, media asset representation 1520 may
correspond to the media asset "Batman Returns" and accordingly such
an identifier 1541 of the title may be displayed in close proximity
(e.g., underneath or above) media asset representation 1520. In
some implementations, the identifiers corresponding to the media
asset representations that are displayed in close proximity to the
media asset representations may also be displayed in perspective to
one another. For example, the titles in the second perspective view
may gradually appear smaller and smaller for media asset
representations that appear further and further away.
[0230] To bring media asset representations into focus, the user
may press a right/left arrow key. As a result, processing circuitry
306 may slide media asset representation 1520 from the second
perspective view into the first perspective view. Additionally, the
media asset representations that are displayed further away from
media asset representation 1520 may be brought into closer
view.
[0231] The user may bring the item corresponding to "my
recommendations" or "new releases" or "last week top choices" into
focus by, for example pressing up/down arrow keys. Alternatively,
the user may position a cursor over the particular item and press a
select key. Processing circuitry 306 may generate a display of
media asset representations corresponding to menu item in focus and
the user may press left/right arrow keys to bring into focus one of
the media asset representations. In particular, when the item
corresponding to "my recommendations" is in focus, processing
circuitry 306 may generate a display of media asset representations
corresponding media assets that the online video vendor recommends
for the user based on, for example, a user profile or previous
media assets that the user added to the queue or in which the user
indicated an interest. When the item corresponding to "new
releases" is in focus, processing circuitry 306 may generate a
display of media asset representations corresponding media assets
that have recently (e.g., within the past week or two) been made
available on Bluray, DVD or download. When the item corresponding
to "last week top choices" is in focus, processing circuitry 306
may generate a display of media asset representations corresponding
media assets that were most rented, checked out or downloaded or
were highest rated in the previous week.
[0232] The media asset representation that is in focus may be added
to the queue associated with the user by pressing a confirm key or
some other suitable key. Additionally, the user may press an info
key to bring up a display of detailed information about the media
asset corresponding to the media asset representation in focus
similar to screen 1200 (FIG. 12). The user may also obtain instant
access to the media asset corresponding to the media asset
representation in focus (e.g., by way of streaming video or
download) when available by the online video vendor.
[0233] At any point in the media guidance application (i.e., when
in any of the screens discussed above and below), the user may
press a menu key or other suitable key to bring up the display of
main menu screen 700 (FIG. 7). Alternatively, instead of navigating
back to screen 700 when the user presses the menu key, main menu
bar 740 may be displayed on a side of the screen being viewed. In
some implementations, when main menu bar 740 is displayed on a side
of the screen being viewed, the main menu bar 740 may be displayed
in a different perspective than the media guidance objects that are
displayed in the screen being viewed.
[0234] When the item corresponding to "search" is in focus,
processing circuitry 306 may generate for display adjacent to the
online video vendor menu a search screen similar to the one
discussed in connection with FIGS. 13 and 14. For example, visual
keypad 1340 may be displayed in a first perspective view different
from the perspective view of the video vendor menu and search
listings region 1310 or 1410 may be displayed as the media guidance
objects adjacent the visual keypad in a second perspective view.
Alternatively, when the item corresponding to "search" is in focus
and the confirm key is pressed, processing circuitry 306 may
navigate the user to search screen 1300 (FIG. 13). The user may
bring into focus any media asset representations resulting from the
search to add corresponding media assets to the video vendor queue
or to access the corresponding media assets immediately via direct
download, live streaming or email.
[0235] Referring back to FIG. 7, the user may select an option to
access a personal photo library from main menu bar 740. A display
screen may be provided for the user which presents the user's
personal photo library using perspective views.
[0236] FIG. 16 shows an illustrative display screen 1600 of
accessing a personal photo library using perspective views in
accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In particular,
screen 1600 illustrates the implementation where the media guidance
objects discussed in connection with screens 500a-c (FIGS. 5a-c)
are photo album representation and corresponding photographs. In
particular, photo album representation 1630 displayed in a first
perspective view may correspond to media guidance object 514a,
photograph 1610 displayed in a second perspective view may
correspond to media guidance objects 510a and photograph 1620
displayed in a third perspective view may correspond to media
guidance objects 512a.
[0237] The photo album that is in focus may be displayed in the
center of the screen. As shown in screen 1600, multiple photo
albums with their corresponding photographs may be viewed
simultaneously in perspective. The photo albums and the
corresponding photographs may be retrieved from local storage, from
a remote device, a remote server or the Internet.
[0238] Screen 1600 may include one or more photo album arrays 1640
that are each displayed in perspective relative to one another. A
photo album array 1640 may include photo album representation 1630
displayed in a first perspective view with photograph 1610 that
belongs to the photo album corresponding to photo album
representation 1630 being displayed in a different second
perspective view adjacent to photo album representation 1630. The
remaining photographs that belong to the photo album corresponding
to photo album representation 1630 may be displayed adjacent to
photograph 1610 in a third perspective view. Although photo album
arrays 1640 are shown as extending across the screen from left to
right, they may be displayed down the screen from top to bottom or
bottom to top. In such an implementation, the photo album
representation may be displayed at the top or bottom of the screen
while the photographs belonging to the photo album corresponding to
the photo album representation may be displayed adjacent each other
and adjacent to the photo album representation.
[0239] The photo album arrays 1640 may be displayed adjacent to
each other and in perspective relative to the photo album array
that is in focus. For example, as shown in screen 1600, photo album
array 1640 is in focus and the adjacent photo album arrays
gradually decrease in size. In particular, the photo album
representations and photographs belonging to the photo albums
corresponding to the respective photo album representations
gradually appear smaller as they increase in distance from the
photo album array in focus. This creates the appearance of a
pyramid of photographs from all of the albums where the photo album
array in focus is displayed at the top of the pyramid and the rest
of the photo album arrays are displayed on respective steps of the
pyramid with one photo album array being displayed per step of the
pyramid.
[0240] The user may bring photo album arrays into focus by, for
example pressing an up/down arrow key. In particular, when the user
presses an up arrow key, processing circuitry 306 may slide onto
the top of the pyramid the photo album array corresponding to the
photo album representation "Japanese garden" and slide down into
the next step of the pyramid the photo album array corresponding to
the photo album representation "Muir woods." Alternatively, the
user may simply position a moveable cursor over a desired photo
album array and press an action or confirm key to bring the desired
photo album array into focus.
[0241] The user may bring into focus different photographs by
pressing left/right arrow keys. In particular, the user may press a
right arrow key and as a result processing circuitry 306 may slide
through a fold from the third perspective view into the second
perspective view photograph 1620 and slide out of the second
perspective view photograph 1610. In particular, a fold may appear
between the photograph in focus in the second perspective view and
the rest of the photographs that belong to the album in the third
perspective view. When the user presses a right arrow key, the next
photograph in the third perspective view immediately adjacent the
photograph in focus in the second perspective view may slide
through the fold from the third perspective view into the second
perspective view. In some other embodiments, instead of sliding
from the third perspective view into the second perspective view,
the immediately adjacent photograph may instantaneously be moved
from the third perspective view into the second perspective view
with a jump operation.
[0242] In some implementations, the photo album representations
displayed in the first perspective view may be static such that as
the user slides different photographs from the third perspective
view into the second perspective view through the fold, the photo
album representations remain stationary or unchanged. In some
implementations, the user may shift the photo album representations
displayed in the first perspective view out of the screen. In such
scenarios, more room may be provided for displaying the
photographs. When the photo album representations are shifted out
of the screen, only two perspective views may be provided where the
photograph in focus in the second perspective view may be displayed
in the first perspective view and the immediately adjacent
photographs that belong to the same album may be displayed in the
second perspective view. The remaining rows are arranged in a
similar manner in the two perspective view scenario when the photo
album representations are shifted out of the display.
[0243] In some implementations, the photo album representations may
be caused to slide into the second perspective view from the first
perspective view through a fold that appears between the photo
album representations and the photographs that are displayed in the
second perspective view. This may allow more photo album
representations to be displayed at once and may enable the user to
see and select more photo album representations. For example, when
the photo album representations are caused to slide into the second
perspective view from the first perspective view, the photographs
displayed in the second perspective view may be caused to slide
into the third perspective view and additional photo album
representations may be brought into view in the first perspective
view. When the user selects a particular photo album
representation, the screen may return to display the photo album
representations in the first perspective view and the corresponding
photographs in the second and third perspective views as shown.
[0244] The user may edit, rotate, print, access, playback or
otherwise execute a desirable action on any photograph that is in
focus. For example, the user may press a confirm key and cause the
photograph that is in focus to be displayed on a full screen.
Alternatively, the user may press a confirm key or some other
suitable key to have the photographs of the photo album array that
is in focus be displayed in a full screen slideshow.
[0245] Although screen 1600 has been shown and described in the
context of a photo album and corresponding photographs, it should
be understood that the teaching applies to any other type of
personal media. For example, in some embodiments, screen 1600 may
display user playlists in a similar multiple playlist arrays
arrangement as the photo album arrays arrangement. In particular,
each playlist array may include a playlist representation (e.g.,
name of the playlist) in place of the photo album representation
1630 and the media assets belonging to the playlist in place of
photographs 1610 and 1620. The media assets of the playlists may be
digital audio assets or video assets or a combination thereof.
[0246] In some other embodiments, screen 1600 may display favorite
websites of the user in a similar multiple favorite website arrays
arrangement as the photo album arrays arrangement. In particular,
each favorite websites array may include a favorite websites
category representation (e.g., news websites or email websites) in
place of the photo album representation 1630 and images of home
pages of the websites belonging to the favorite websites category
in place of photographs 1610 and 1620. The website home pages may
be locally cached or accessed as they are needed (e.g., as a
favorite websites array is brought into view when the user changes
which favorite websites array is in focus). As discussed with
reference to screen 1600 displaying photo album arrays, the user
may press a confirm key or other suitable key when a favorite
websites array is in focus and processing circuitry 306 may create
a full screen slideshow of each of the websites belonging to the
favorite websites array. The user may configure the length of time
each website belonging to the favorites website array is displayed
on the screen before the next website is displayed. Additionally,
each website may be configured to be displayed for a different
length of time even though it belongs to the same favorites website
array.
[0247] Referring back to FIG. 7, the user may select an option to
add a widget to the screen from main menu bar 740. A display screen
may be provided that includes a media asset (e.g., a television
program) and overlaid on the media asset may be one or more widgets
that the user has added.
[0248] FIG. 17 shows an illustrative display screen 1700 of a media
asset overlaid with widgets in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention. In particular, screen 1700 may include the display of a
video asset 1720 and one or more widgets 1710, 1730 and 1720. The
widgets may be various modular type applications that the user can
interact with while accessing or viewing a media asset.
[0249] One or more of widgets 1710, 1730 and 1720 may be partially
transparent to allow the user to view both the widget content and
the media asset content in the same portion of the display. Some of
the widgets may be interactive while other widgets that are
displayed may present static information (e.g., sports scores). In
order to change which widget is in focus (i.e., the widget with
which the user may interact with), the user may toggle the widgets
in focus by pressing a left/right arrow key.
[0250] For example, widget 1710 may present stock quotes. The stock
quotes presented by widget 1710 may be in real-time (i.e., may
update as the public is buying/selling a particular stock) or may
provide last sale information and ticker symbol information (e.g.,
graphs and detailed description). When widget 1710 is in focus, the
user may change which stock quote is being provided by entering in
a new ticker symbol or pressing a suitable key to toggle between
ticker symbols stored in a stock portfolio associated with the
user.
[0251] After the user has selected the desired stock quote, the
user may access widget 1730 by, for example, pressing a left/right
arrow key. In particular, the user may press a right arrow key to
bring widget 1730 into focus and may press a left arrow key to
return to the previous widget 1710 that was in focus. Widget 1730
may be a social networking application that allows a user to view a
status of other people and update the user's own status (e.g.,
Facebook or Twitter). When widget 1730 is in focus, the user may
input a text string indicating what he/she is doing right now. The
user may also navigate within widget 1730 to find out what his/her
friends are doing right now by viewing their status.
[0252] Other applications that may be provided similar to widget
1730 are chat applications that allow the user to interact with
other people around the world (e.g., by using video chat, text chat
or voice chat using for example, Skype). In some embodiments, the
processing circuitry 306 may monitor what the user is communicating
(e.g., typing, saying, looking at) and provide recommendations
based on that information. For example, processing circuitry 306
may monitor a chat session the user is having with a friend using
one or more of the widgets or may monitor a status update
associated with the user from one or more of the widgets. Based on
the content being discussed during the chat session or status
update, processing circuitry 306 may provide future media asset
recommendations. In particular, the user may be chatting with a
friend about a future episode of the show "Family Guy." Processing
circuitry 306 may remind the user at a later time (e.g., five
minutes before the show is broadcast) about the chat session and
inform the user that the show that was discussed in the chat
session is about to begin. Alternatively, processing circuitry 306
may automatically record the corresponding media assets.
[0253] The user may also select the position in which the widgets
are displayed on the screen. This feature may be desirable to avoid
obstructing a particular region of the screen. For example, the
user may have an interest in obstructing or not obstructing
different regions of the screen for different programming.
Accordingly, the user may pressing an up/down arrow key when a
particular widget is in focus to move that widget around the screen
to a desirable location. It should be noted that other keys besides
the up/down arrow keys may be used to move a widget around the
screen. Also, the widget may be positioned anywhere on the screen
not limited to the corners as shown in screen 1700. In some
implementations, the user may use a movable cursor to select a
widget to bring into focus and/or to move a selected widget to a
particular location on the screen.
[0254] In some embodiments, processing circuitry 306 may store the
location that the user selected for a particular widget. Processing
circuitry 306 may also store the media asset that was being
accessed when the widget was moved to a particular location. When
the user views or accesses the same media asset or some episode of
the media asset at a later time or date, processing circuitry 306
may retrieve the stored location and automatically display the
widget in the previously selected location. This may reduce a
burden on the user to move the widget again to the previously
selected location when accessing the same or similar media
asset.
[0255] The user may remove widgets from the display by bringing a
widget into focus and pressing a suitable key such as a delete key.
The user may add more widgets onto the display by, for example,
pressing a menu key. Pressing the menu key may bring up the display
of main menu 740 (FIG. 7) with the widgets item 720 in focus. The
user may select a new widget from main menu 740 and as a result the
selected widget may appear on the display screen. The default
location of the newly displayed widget may be in a corner of the
screen but the location may be changed either manually by the user
(as discussed above) or automatically by processing circuitry 306
based on a previously stored location for the selected widget.
[0256] Widget 1720 may present the user with scores for sports
games in which the user indicates an interest. For example, the
user may select various teams or games in which they have an
interest and when those teams/games are playing, widget 1720 may
provide up-to-date score reports in real-time. In some
implementations, widget 1720 may provide a video feed of the live
game or clips of highlights of a particular score made by a team.
The video feed provided by widget 1720 may be received over the
Internet from a website or by tuning to a channel on a tuner (when
multiple tuners are available) in the media equipment device.
[0257] In some embodiments, the user may store favorite teams or
sports to a profile. When one of the teams or sports are being
played, processing circuitry 306 may automatically display widget
1720 with the score report of the favorite team or sport.
Accordingly, when the user forgets about a particular game or team
in which the user has an interest or when a time change is made to
the favorite game unknown to the user, the user may nevertheless be
reminded and informed about the score of the favorite team or game
with the automatic display of widget 1720.
[0258] While the user is viewing or accessing media asset 1720, the
user may press a confirm key or info key to view a detailed
information overlay corresponding to media asset 1720. The
information overlay may include a summary about media asset 1720,
time and channel information, runtime, time left in the program,
related media assets, a list of friends associated with the user
that have an interest in the media asset or any other suitable
information. The overlay may present similar information about any
other media asset not limited to media asset 1720 being accessed.
In particular, the overlay may be changed to see what is on a
different program source or channel now or at a later or earlier
time/date.
[0259] FIG. 18 shows an illustrative display screen 1800 of an
information overlay 1810 displayed with a media asset in accordance
with an embodiment of the invention. Overlay 1810 may include an
information region and a menu region 1820. Menu region 1820 may
include items that are displayed in perspective relative to each
other. The items of the menu may correspond to actions the user may
select to perform for the media asset corresponding to the
information being displayed in overlay 1810.
[0260] Items of menu region 1820 may include "what's next,"
"record," "close," "more info," "similar shows" and/or any other
suitable option (e.g., set reminder, other airtimes, etc.). Anther
item that is not shown that may be included in menu region 1820 may
be an "add to playlist" item which adds the media asset
corresponding to the information in menu region 1820 to a playlist
of media assets.
[0261] The user may navigate or bring into focus different items of
menu region 1820 by, for example, pressing an up/down arrow key.
The items of menu 1820 may be displayed in a similar manner as the
items of main menu 740 (FIG. 7). For example, the item in focus may
be more prominently displayed (e.g., larger in size) than other
items of menu region 1820. In particular, items of menu region 1820
that are further away from the item in focus may be displayed in
gradually decreasing sizes with the item furthest away being
smallest in size.
[0262] The user may select the item in focus by, for example,
pressing a confirm key. In particular, when the "close" item is in
focus, selection of the confirm key may close overlay 1810 and make
the overlay disappear. Selection of the "record" item may schedule
for recording the media asset corresponding to the information
being displayed. Selection of "more info" item may bring up a
display similar to screen 1000 (FIG. 10). The user may then
interact with the display in a similar manner as discussed above in
connection with screen 1000 to perform actions and view detailed
information about the media asset corresponding to the information
being displayed in overlay 1810.
[0263] FIG. 19 is an illustrative flow diagram 1900 for using a
media guidance application with perspective views in accordance
with embodiments of the present invention. At step 1910, a first
media guidance application object is displayed in a first
perspective view. For example, first media asset representation 652
may be displayed in a first perspective view (FIG. 6).
Additionally, the media asset representations may be arranged in
alphabetical order or some other suitable order such as in order of
relevance to the user. In another embodiment, first program listing
912 may be displayed in a first perspective view (FIG. 9).
Additionally, the program listings may be placed in an order
corresponding to the broadcast time or time interval of the
corresponding programs. In some implementations, the first media
guidance application object that is displayed in the first
perspective view may include all of the displayed program listings
that correspond to a particular time interval.
[0264] At step 1920, a second media guidance application object is
displayed in a second perspective view different from the first
perspective view. A fold appears between the first and second media
guidance application objects where the first perspective view
changes into the second perspective view. For example, second and
third media asset representations 654 and 655 may be displayed in a
second perspective view (FIG. 6). In another embodiment, second and
third program listings 922 and 932 may be displayed in a second
perspective view (FIG. 9). In some implementations, the second and
third media guidance application objects that are displayed in the
second perspective view may include all of the displayed program
listings that correspond to a particular time interval that is
later in time than the time interval of the program listings that
are in focus (i.e., the program listings displayed in the first
perspective view).
[0265] At step 1930, the second media guidance application object
is made to slide from the second perspective view into the first
perspective view through the fold. For example, when the user
presses a right arrow key, processing circuitry 306 slides media
asset representation 654 from the second perspective view into the
first perspective view. Media asset representation 652 is removed
from the first perspective view and media asset representation 654
becomes in focus. Similarly, in another embodiment, when the user
presses a right arrow key, processing circuitry 306 slides program
listing 922 from the second perspective view into the first
perspective view and updates the time interval displayed in the
first perspective view to correspond to the time interval
associated with program listing 922. Program listing 912 is removed
from the first perspective view and program listing 922 becomes in
focus. In some implementations, when the user presses a right arrow
key, all of the program listings associated with the next time
interval 920 slide into the first perspective view from the second
perspective view and all of the program listings associated with
the currently viewed time interval 90 are removed from the first
perspective view.
[0266] At step 1940, the second media guidance application object
that is displayed in the first perspective view is selected. For
example, second media asset representation 654 or program listing
922 that is now in focus in the first perspective view may be
selected. When the media asset representation or program listing is
selected the media asset corresponding to the selected media asset
representation or program listing may be accessed or played back or
the user may be navigated to a detailed description screen 1000
(FIG. 10) corresponding to the media asset.
[0267] FIG. 20 is an illustrative flow diagram 2000 for using a
media guidance application with perspective views in accordance
with embodiments of the present invention. At step 2010, a
plurality of media asset search listings are displayed in a first
perspective view. For example, saved searches region 1310 (FIG. 13)
may display a plurality of media asset search listings 1330 that
each represent a previously executed search for media assets.
Similarly, media asset search results region 1410 (FIG. 14) may
display a plurality of media asset search listings 1440 and 1420
that each represent a media asset associated with a search string
provided with visual keypad 1340.
[0268] At step 2020, a plurality of media guidance application
objects that are associated with one of the media asset search
listings are displayed in a second perspective view that is
different from the first perspective view. For example, media asset
results region 1320 may display media asset representations 1322
that each represent media assets that correspond to a search
listing that is in focus (FIG. 13). Similarly, related media assets
region 1450 may display a row 1430 of media asset representations
for each media asset search listing 1440 and 1420 that is displayed
in media asset search results region 1410 where each row 1430
include media asset representations of media assets related to the
corresponding search listing 1440 and 1420 (FIG. 14).
[0269] At step 2030, one of the plurality of media guidance
application objects that are displayed in the second perspective
view is selected. For example, the user may press a right/left
arrow key to bring into focus one of the media asset
representations. The media asset representation that is in focus
may be selected. When the media asset representation is selected
the media asset corresponding to the selected media asset
representation may be accessed or played back or the user may be
navigated to a detailed description screen 1000 (FIG. 10)
corresponding to the media asset.
[0270] FIG. 21 is an illustrative flow diagram 2100 for generating
a display of media guidance objects in perspective views in
accordance with embodiments of the present invention. At step 2110,
a determination is made as to the number of perspective views that
are to be generated for display. When it is determined that two
perspective views are needed, the process proceeds to step 2130.
When it is determined that three perspective views are needed, the
process proceeds to step 2112. For example, processing circuitry
306 may determine that a three perspective view display is
necessary when a user needs to login to the system (e.g., FIG. 5b),
when a display of program schedule is necessary (e.g., FIG. 9) or
when a search function is to be performed (e.g., FIGS. 13 and 14).
Processing circuitry 306 may determine that a two perspective view
display is necessary when presenting media assets for selection
(e.g., previously recoded media assets, email messages, or assets
in an online video vendor queue) (FIGS. 6 and 15).
[0271] At step 2130, storage locations of media guidance objects
are retrieved from memory. For example, media guidance objects such
as media asset representations, user profile representations,
scheduling information, search functions, photo album and
photograph representations may be stored in a memory as a single or
double linked list, data structures, databases, or any other type
of organizational storage object. Processing circuitry 306 may
determine where media guidance objects are stored and generate a
pointer to the first of the media guidance objects in the memory.
Processing circuitry 306 may retrieve the first two media guidance
objects from the memory.
[0272] At step 2132, one of the media guidance objects from a first
storage location is displayed in a first perspective view. For
example, processing circuitry 306 may generate a display that
includes media guidance object 510a from the first storage location
in a first perspective view (e.g., perspective view 582a (FIG.
5a)). Media guidance objects in the first perspective view may
appear flat on the display screen.
[0273] At step 2134, another one of the media guidance objects from
a next or subsequent storage location is displayed in a second
perspective view. For example, processing circuitry 306 may advance
by one storage location the pointer past the last storage location
from which media objects were retrieved and retrieve from that
storage location media guidance object 512a and generate a display
that includes media guidance object 512a from the next storage
location in a second perspective view (e.g., perspective view 584a
(FIG. 5a)). Media guidance objects in the first perspective view
may as though they are going into the display screen and gradually
decreasing in size.
[0274] At step 2136, a determine is made as to whether there is
enough room in the display screen for clearly presenting or
displaying more media guidance objects. When it is determined that
there is available room on the display screen, the process returns
to step 2134 to display another media guidance object. When it is
determined that there is no available room on the display screen,
the process proceeds to step 2138. For example, processing
circuitry 306 may determine whether displaying another media
guidance object in a particular perspective view may cause the
media guidance object to be too distorted (e.g., because the media
guidance object would appear too small or too large) such that it
cannot be clearly identified. When such a determination is made
processing circuitry 306 may determine that there is not enough
room to clearly display another media guidance object.
[0275] At step 2138, a determination is made as to whether a user
input was received. When the received user input is a left command
(e.g., a left direction arrow key is pressed), the process proceeds
to step 2610 in flow diagram 2600 (FIG. 26). When the received user
input is a right command (e.g., a right direction arrow key is
pressed), the process proceeds to step 2710 in flow diagram 2700
(FIG. 27). When the received user input is a keypad request or menu
command, the process proceeds to step 2118. When the received user
input is a confirm command (e.g., an enter key or confirm key is
pressed), the process proceeds to step 2140. As discussed, above,
the commands may be received through any input means such as a
remote controller, voice activation, voice recognition, wireless or
wired device, vision analysis (e.g., where the eyes are positioned
and looking at), optical scan, infrared devices, one or more laser
pointers, or other suitable means.
[0276] At step 2140, an action associated with the media guidance
object displayed in the first perspective view is performed. For
example, when a user profile representation is the media guidance
object displayed in the first perspective view, processing
circuitry 306 may login a user associated with the particular
profile representation as the action that is performed. When a
media asset representation is the media guidance object displayed
in the first perspective view, processing circuitry 306 may access,
order or playback the media asset associated with the media asset
representation as the action that is performed. The process then
returns to step 2110.
[0277] At step 2610, a determination is made as to whether a jump
setting is enabled or whether the command issued is a jump command.
When it is determined that the jump setting is enabled or jump
command is issued, the process proceeds to step 2612, otherwise the
process proceeds to step 2614.
[0278] At step 2612, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is instantaneously moved from the
first perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0279] At step 2614, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is caused to slide from the first
perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0280] At step 2616, media guidance objects within the second
perspective view are shifted over one media guidance object space
to the right.
[0281] At step 2618, a determination is made as to whether there is
a media guidance object in a storage location that precedes the
media guidance object displayed in the first perspective view
before the user input was received. When it is determined that
there is such a media guidance object, the process proceeds to step
2620, otherwise the process proceeds to step 2622.
[0282] At step 2620, a media guidance object from the storage
location that precedes the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view before the user input was received is
displayed in the first perspective view. The process then returns
to step 2138 (FIG. 21).
[0283] At step 2622, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view is prevented from begin caused to slide or
moved in steps 2614 and 2616. In particular, steps 2614 and 2616
may be omitted or the operations associated with them may be undone
when no media guidance object is available in a storage location
that precedes the media guidance object displayed in the first
perspective view before the user input was received.
[0284] At step 2624, a prompt indicating that no media guidance
objects that precede the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view are available may be displayed. The process
then returns to step 2138 (FIG. 21).
[0285] When the received user input at step 2138 is a right command
(e.g., a right direction arrow key is pressed), the process
proceeds to step 2710 in flow diagram 2700 (FIG. 27). At step 2710,
a determination is made as to whether a jump setting is enabled or
whether the command issued is a jump command. When it is determined
that the jump setting is enabled or jump command is issued, the
process proceeds to step 2712, otherwise the process proceeds to
step 2716.
[0286] At step 2712, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the first perspective view is instantaneously moved
from the second perspective view into the first perspective
view.
[0287] At step 2714, the media guidance object in the first
perspective view is removed from the display.
[0288] At step 2716, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the first perspective view is caused to slide from the
second perspective view into the first perspective view.
[0289] At step 2718, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view is caused to slide out of the first
perspective view off the display.
[0290] At step 2720, media guidance objects displayed within the
second perspective view are shifted over one media guidance object
space to the left.
[0291] At step 2722, a determination is made as to whether there
exists a media guidance object in a storage location that follows
the storage location of the last media guidance object displayed in
the second perspective view before the user input was received.
When it is determined that such a media guidance object exists, the
process proceeds to step 2724, otherwise the process returns to
step 2138 (FIG. 21).
[0292] At step 2724, the media guidance object from the storage
location that follows the storage location of the last media
guidance object displayed in the second perspective view before the
user input was received is displayed in the second perspective
view. The process then proceeds to step 2138 (FIG. 21).
[0293] Referring back to step 2110 (FIG. 21), when it is determined
that three perspective views are needed, the process proceeds to
step 2112. At step 2112, storage locations of media guidance
objects are retrieved from memory. For example, media guidance
objects such as media asset representations, user profile
representations, scheduling information, search functions, photo
album and photograph representations may be stored in a memory as a
single or double linked list, data structures, databases, or any
other type of organizational storage object. Processing circuitry
306 may determine where media guidance objects are stored and
generate a pointer to the first of the media guidance objects in
the memory. Processing circuitry 306 may retrieve the first three
media guidance objects from the memory.
[0294] At step 2114, one of the media guidance objects from a first
storage location is displayed in a first perspective view. For
example, processing circuitry 306 may generate a display that
includes media guidance object 514a from the first storage location
in a first perspective view 580a (FIG. 5a).
[0295] At step 2116, a second one of the media guidance objects
from a second storage location is displayed in a second perspective
view. For example, processing circuitry 306 may generate a display
that includes media guidance object 510a from the first storage
location in a second perspective view 582a (FIG. 5a).
[0296] At step 2118, another one of the media guidance objects from
a next or subsequent storage location is displayed in a third
perspective view. For example, processing circuitry 306 may advance
by one storage location the pointer past the last storage location
from which media objects were retrieved and retrieve from that
storage location media guidance object 512a and generate a display
that includes media guidance object 512a from the next storage
location in a third perspective view 584a (FIG. 5a).
[0297] At step 2120, a determine is made as to whether there is
enough room in the display screen for clearly presenting or
displaying more media guidance objects. When it is determined that
there is available room on the display screen, the process returns
to step 2118 to display another media guidance object. When it is
determined that there is no available room on the display screen,
the process proceeds to step 2122. For example, processing
circuitry 306 may determine whether displaying another media
guidance object in a particular perspective view may cause the
media guidance object to be too distorted (e.g., because the media
guidance object would appear too small or too large) such that it
cannot be clearly identified. When such a determination is made
processing circuitry 306 may determine that there is not enough
room to clearly display another media guidance object.
[0298] At step 2122, a determination is made as to whether a user
input was received. When the received user input is a left command
(e.g., a left direction arrow key is pressed), the process proceeds
to step 2124. When the received user input is a right command
(e.g., a right direction arrow key is pressed), the process
proceeds to step 2128. When the received user input is a toggle
keypad view command, the process modifies the display to a two
perspective display type by removing media guidance objects from
the first perspective view and proceeds to step 2138. When the
received user input is a confirm command (e.g., an enter key or
confirm key is pressed), the process proceeds to step 2126. As
discussed, above, the commands may be received through any input
means such as a remote controller, voice activation, voice
recognition, wireless or wired device, vision analysis (e.g., where
the eyes are positioned and looking at), optical scan, infrared
devices, one or more laser pointers, or other suitable means.
[0299] At step 2126, an action associated with the media guidance
object displayed in the second perspective view is performed. For
example, when a user profile representation is the media guidance
object displayed in the second perspective view, processing
circuitry 306 may login a user associated with the particular
profile representation as the action that is performed. When a
media asset representation is the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view, processing circuitry 306 may
access, order or playback the media asset associated with the media
asset representation as the action that is performed. When a search
listing is the media guidance object displayed in the second
perspective view, processing circuitry 306 may retrieve search
results associated with the search listing as the action that is
performed. The process then returns to step 2101.
[0300] At step 2124, a determination is made as to whether the
first perspective view is static. When it is determined that the
first perspective view is static, the process proceeds to step 2210
of flow diagram 2200 (FIG. 22), otherwise the process proceeds to
step 2310 of flow diagram 2300 (FIG. 23). Processing circuitry 306
may determine that the first perspective view is static when, for
example, a visual keypad (FIG. 13), album identifiers or playlist
identifiers (FIG. 16), or source identifiers (FIG. 9) are the media
guidance objects displayed in the first perspective view. In
particular, processing circuitry 306 may determine that the first
perspective view is static when, for example, media guidance
objects displayed in the first perspective view relate to,
correspond to, or otherwise identify media guidance objects
displayed in other perspective views and as such media guidance
objects displayed in the first perspective view may preferably not
be moved or changed when the user navigates between the media
guidance objects displayed in the other perspective views.
[0301] At step 2210, a determination is made as to whether a jump
setting is enabled or whether the command issued is a jump command.
For example, the system may be configured to with jump or slide
settings. As a default, the system may be configured to have jump
disabled but the user may change this setting. In some
implementations, even though the jump setting may be enabled, the
user may issue a slide command (e.g., using a suitable key on the
remote control or verbal command) and processing circuitry may
execute process 2200 as if the jump were disabled. When it is
determined that the jump setting is enabled or jump command is
issued, the process proceeds to step 2212, otherwise the process
proceeds to step 2216.
[0302] At step 2212, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the third perspective view is instantaneously moved
from the second perspective view into the third perspective view.
For example, media guidance object 510a displayed in second
perspective view 582a may instantaneously be moved into and in
place of media guidance object 512a displayed in third perspective
view 584a. Alternatively, at step 2216, media guidance object 510a
displayed in second perspective view 582a may be caused to slide
over time into and in place of media guidance object 512a displayed
in third perspective view 584a as shown in the opposite direction
of FIGS. 5b and 5c.
[0303] At step 2214, the media guidance objects within the third
perspective view are shifted one media guidance object space over
to the right. For example, shifting the media guidance objects over
by one media guidance object space may make enough room to display
clearly the media guidance object that is moved into the third
perspective view. Some media guidance objects that are moved to
make room may become unclearly displayed and distorted because of
their size and orientation and accordingly may be omitted from the
display. The media guidance object space is the amount of space
(e.g., length or width) a media guidance object takes up in the
display. Shifting the media guidance objects over by one space
means that each media guidance object is displayed in a position of
the immediately adjacent media guidance object to the right or
media guidance object that is next to or to the right of a given
media guidance object.
[0304] At step 2216, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the third perspective view is caused to slide from the
second perspective view into the third perspective view.
[0305] At step 2218, the media guidance objects within the third
perspective view are shifted one media guidance object space over
to the right.
[0306] At step 2220, a determination is made as to whether there
exists a media guidance object in a storage location that precedes
the storage location of the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view before the user input was received. When it
is determined that such a media guidance object exists, the process
proceeds to step 2226, otherwise the process returns to step
2222.
[0307] At step 2226, the media guidance object from the storage
location that precedes the storage location of the media guidance
object displayed in the second perspective view before the user
input was received is displayed in the second perspective view. The
process then returns to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0308] At step 2222, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view is prevented from being caused to slide or
moved in steps 2212 and 2216. In particular, steps 2212 and 2216
may be omitted or the operations associated with them may be undone
when no media guidance object is available in a storage location
that precedes the media guidance object displayed in the second
perspective view before the user input was received.
[0309] At step 2224, a prompt indicating that no media guidance
objects that precede the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view are available may be displayed. The process
then returns to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0310] Referring back to step 2124, when it is determined that the
first perspective view is not static, the process proceeds to step
2310 (FIG. 23). At step 2310, a determination is made as to whether
a jump setting is enabled or whether the command issued is a jump
command. When it is determined that the jump setting is enabled or
jump command is issued, the process proceeds to step 2312,
otherwise the process proceeds to step 2316.
[0311] At step 2312, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is instantaneously moved from the
first perspective view into the second perspective view. For
example, media guidance object 514a displayed in first perspective
view 580a adjacent media guidance object 510a may instantaneously
be moved into and in place of media guidance object 510a displayed
in second perspective view 582a. Alternatively, at step 2316, media
guidance object 514a displayed in first perspective view 580a
adjacent media guidance object 510a may be caused to slide over
time into and in place of media guidance object 510a displayed in
second perspective view 582a as shown in the opposite direction of
FIGS. 5b and 5c.
[0312] At step 2314, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the third perspective view is instantaneously moved
from the second perspective view into the third perspective view.
For example, media guidance object 510a displayed in second
perspective view 582a adjacent media guidance object 512a may
instantaneously be moved into and in place of media guidance object
512a displayed in third perspective view 584a.
[0313] Alternatively, at step 2318, media guidance object 510a
displayed in second perspective view 580a adjacent media guidance
object 512a may be caused to slide over time into and in place of
media guidance object 512a displayed in third perspective view 584a
as shown in the opposite direction of FIGS. 5b and 5c.
[0314] At step 2316, the media guidance object displayed in the
first perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is caused to slide from the first
perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0315] At step 2318, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the third perspective view is caused to slide from the
second perspective view into the third perspective view.
[0316] At step 2320, the media guidance objects within the first
and third perspective views are shifted over by one media guidance
space to the right. For example, shifting the media guidance
objects over by one media guidance object space may make enough
room to display clearly the media guidance object that is moved
into the first or third perspective view. Some media guidance
objects that are moved to make room may become unclearly displayed
and distorted because of their size and orientation and accordingly
may be omitted from the display. The media guidance object space is
the amount of space (e.g., length or width) a media guidance object
takes up in the display. Shifting the media guidance objects over
by one space means that each media guidance object is displayed in
a position of the immediately adjacent media guidance object to the
right or media guidance object that is next to or to the right of a
given media guidance object. Shifting media guidance objects over
is done within a particular perspective such that the media
guidance objects within the perspective are moved to new positions
in the perspective view without being displayed or moved to a
different perspective view.
[0317] At step 2322, a determination is made as to whether there
exists a media guidance object in a storage location that precedes
the storage location of the first media guidance object displayed
in the first perspective view before the user input was received.
When it is determined that such a media guidance object exists, the
process proceeds to step 2326, otherwise the process returns to
step 2324.
[0318] At step 2326, the media guidance object from the storage
location that precedes the storage location of the first media
guidance object displayed in the first perspective view before the
user input was received is displayed in the first perspective view.
The process then returns to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0319] At step 2324, the media guidance objects displayed in the
first, second and third perspective views are prevented from being
caused to slide or moved in steps 2312, 2314, 2316, 2318 and 2320.
In particular, steps 2312, 2314, 2316, 2318 and 2320 may be omitted
or the operations associated with them may be undone when no media
guidance object is available in a storage location that precedes
the first media guidance object displayed in the first perspective
view before the user input was received. The process then returns
to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0320] Referring back to step 2122 (FIG. 21), when it is determined
that the user input is a right command, at step 2128, a
determination is made as to whether the first perspective view is
static. When it is determined that the first perspective view is
static, the process proceeds to step 2410 of flow diagram 2400
(FIG. 24), otherwise the process proceeds to step 2510 of flow
diagram 2500 (FIG. 25). Processing circuitry 306 may determine that
the first perspective view is static when, for example, a visual
keypad (FIG. 13), album identifiers or playlist identifiers (FIG.
16), or source identifiers (FIG. 9) are the media guidance objects
displayed in the first perspective view. In particular, processing
circuitry 306 may determine that the first perspective view is
static when, for example, media guidance objects displayed in the
first perspective view relate to, correspond to, or otherwise
identify media guidance objects displayed in other perspective
views and as such media guidance objects displayed in the first
perspective view may preferably not be moved or changed when the
user navigates between the media guidance objects displayed in the
other perspective views.
[0321] At step 2410, a determination is made as to whether a jump
setting is enabled or whether the command issued is a jump command.
When it is determined that the jump setting is enabled or jump
command is issued, the process proceeds to step 2412, otherwise the
process proceeds to step 2418.
[0322] At step 2412, the media guidance object displayed in the
third perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is instantaneously moved from the
third perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0323] At step 2414, media guidance objects within the third
perspective view are shifted one media guidance object space over
to the left. For example, shifting the media guidance objects over
by one media guidance object space may make enough room to display
clearly the media guidance object that is moved into the third
perspective view. Some media guidance objects that are moved to
make room may become unclearly displayed and distorted because of
their size and orientation and accordingly may be omitted from the
display. The media guidance object space is the amount of space
(e.g., length or width) a media guidance object takes up in the
display. Shifting the media guidance objects over by one space
means that each media guidance object is displayed in a position of
the immediately adjacent media guidance object to the left or media
guidance object that is next to or to the left of a given media
guidance object. As discussed above and below, shifting media
guidance objects over is done within a particular perspective such
that the media guidance objects within the perspective are moved to
new positions in the perspective view without being displayed or
moved to a different perspective view.
[0324] At step 2416, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view is removed from the display.
[0325] At step 2418, the media guidance object displayed in the
third perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is caused to slide from the third
perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0326] At step 2420, media guidance objects within the third
perspective view are shifted one media guidance object space over
to the left.
[0327] At step 2422, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view is caused to slide out of the second
perspective view and off of the display.
[0328] At step 2424, a determination is made as to whether there
exists a media guidance object in a storage location that follows
the storage location of the last media guidance object displayed in
the third perspective view before the user input was received. When
it is determined that such a media guidance object exists, the
process proceeds to step 2426, otherwise the process returns to
step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0329] At step 2426, the media guidance object from the storage
location that follows the storage location of the last media
guidance object displayed in the third perspective view before the
user input was received is displayed in the third perspective view.
The process then proceeds to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0330] Referring back to step 2428, when it is determined that the
first perspective view is not static, the process proceeds to step
2510 (FIG. 25). At step 2510, a determination is made as to whether
a jump setting is enabled or whether the command issued is a jump
command. When it is determined that the jump setting is enabled or
jump command is issued, the process proceeds to step 2512,
otherwise the process proceeds to step 2516.
[0331] At step 2512, the media guidance object displayed in the
third perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is instantaneously moved from the
third perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0332] At step 2514, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the first perspective view is instantaneously moved
from the second perspective view into the first perspective
view.
[0333] At step 2516, the media guidance object displayed in the
third perspective view adjacent the media guidance object displayed
in the second perspective view is caused to slide from the third
perspective view into the second perspective view.
[0334] At step 2518, the media guidance object displayed in the
second perspective view adjacent the media guidance object
displayed in the first perspective view is caused to slide from the
second perspective view into the first perspective view.
[0335] At step 2520, the media guidance objects within the first
and third perspective views are shifted one media guidance object
space over to the left. For example, shifting the media guidance
objects over by one media guidance object space may make enough
room to display clearly the media guidance object that is moved
into the first or third perspective view. Some media guidance
objects that are moved to make room may become unclearly displayed
and distorted because of their size and orientation and accordingly
may be omitted from the display. The media guidance object space is
the amount of space (e.g., length or width) a media guidance object
takes up in the display. Shifting the media guidance objects over
by one space means that each media guidance object is displayed in
a position of the immediately adjacent media guidance object to the
left or media guidance object that is next to or to the left of a
given media guidance object.
[0336] At step 2522, a determination is made as to whether there
exists a media guidance object in a storage location that follows
the storage location of the last media guidance object displayed in
the third perspective view before the user input was received. When
it is determined that such a media guidance object exists, the
process proceeds to step 2524, otherwise the process returns to
step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0337] At step 2524, the media guidance object from the storage
location that follows the storage location of the last media
guidance object displayed in the third perspective view before the
user input was received is displayed in the third perspective view.
The process then proceeds to step 2122 (FIG. 21).
[0338] It should be understood, that the above steps of the flow
diagrams of FIGS. 19-27 may be executed or performed in any order
or sequence no limited to the order and sequence shown and
described in the figures. Also, some of the above steps of the flow
diagrams of FIGS. 19-27 may be executed or performed substantially
simultaneously where appropriate or in parallel to reduce latency
and processing times.
[0339] The above described embodiments of the present invention are
presented for purposes of illustration and not of limitation, and
the present invention is limited only by the claims which
follow.
* * * * *
References