U.S. patent application number 13/969875 was filed with the patent office on 2014-02-27 for systems and methods for providing user interfaces in an intelligent television.
This patent application is currently assigned to Flextronics AP, LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Flextronics AP, LLC. Invention is credited to Alexander de Paz, Saulo Correia Dourado, Karina A. Limongi, Mohammed Selim, Sanjiv Sirpal, Salvador Soto.
Application Number | 20140059480 13/969875 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 50099797 |
Filed Date | 2014-02-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140059480 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
de Paz; Alexander ; et
al. |
February 27, 2014 |
SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PROVIDING USER INTERFACES IN AN INTELLIGENT
TELEVISION
Abstract
An intelligent television can provide various interfaces for
navigating processes associated with providing content. The user
interfaces include unique visual representations and organizations
that allow the user to utilize the intelligent television more
easily and more effectively. Particularly, the user interfaces
pertain to the display of media content, electronic programming
guide information, television content, and other content. Further,
the user interfaces provide unique process of transitioning between
the content.
Inventors: |
de Paz; Alexander;
(Burlington, CA) ; Dourado; Saulo Correia;
(Oakville, CA) ; Limongi; Karina A.; (Oakville,
CA) ; Sirpal; Sanjiv; (Oakville, CA) ; Selim;
Mohammed; (Oakville, CA) ; Soto; Salvador;
(Toronto, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Flextronics AP, LLC |
San Jose |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Flextronics AP, LLC
San Jose
CA
|
Family ID: |
50099797 |
Appl. No.: |
13/969875 |
Filed: |
August 19, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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61684672 |
Aug 17, 2012 |
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61702650 |
Sep 18, 2012 |
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61697710 |
Sep 6, 2012 |
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61700182 |
Sep 12, 2012 |
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61736692 |
Dec 13, 2012 |
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61798821 |
Mar 15, 2013 |
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61804942 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61804998 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61804971 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61804990 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805003 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805053 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805030 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805027 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805042 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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61805038 |
Mar 25, 2013 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
715/781 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N 21/23109 20130101;
H04N 21/42222 20130101; H04N 21/4314 20130101; H04N 21/478
20130101; H04N 21/6175 20130101; H04N 21/24 20130101; H04N 21/40
20130101; G06F 3/017 20130101; H04L 51/32 20130101; H04N 21/422
20130101; H04N 21/8358 20130101; H04N 21/85 20130101; G06F
2203/04804 20130101; H04N 21/4332 20130101; H04N 21/47202 20130101;
G06F 3/0481 20130101; G06F 3/04817 20130101; H04N 21/432 20130101;
H04N 21/435 20130101; H04N 21/44222 20130101; H04N 21/43 20130101;
H04N 21/433 20130101; H04N 21/6125 20130101; H04N 21/84 20130101;
H04N 21/41265 20200801; H04N 21/8545 20130101; H04N 21/4415
20130101; H04N 21/442 20130101; H04N 21/8166 20130101; H04N 17/04
20130101; H04N 21/25883 20130101; H04N 21/4221 20130101; H04N
21/4302 20130101; H04N 21/4396 20130101; H04N 21/4823 20130101;
H04N 21/4753 20130101; H04N 21/485 20130101; H04N 21/4307 20130101;
H04N 21/47 20130101; G06F 3/04883 20130101; H04N 21/472 20130101;
H04N 5/50 20130101; H04N 21/25 20130101; H04N 21/4858 20130101;
H04N 21/4622 20130101; H04N 21/488 20130101; H04N 21/8173 20130101;
H04N 21/4532 20130101; H04N 21/4826 20130101; H04N 5/44 20130101;
H04N 21/258 20130101; H04N 21/475 20130101; H04N 21/4755 20130101;
H04N 5/45 20130101; H04N 21/251 20130101; H04N 21/4821 20130101;
H04N 21/4828 20130101; H04N 21/42203 20130101; H04N 21/4316
20130101; H04N 21/437 20130101; H04N 21/47205 20130101; H04N
21/4312 20130101; H04N 21/4782 20130101; H04N 21/26291 20130101;
H04N 21/414 20130101; H04N 21/42206 20130101; H04N 21/44213
20130101; H04N 21/482 20130101; H04N 21/235 20130101; H04N 21/42204
20130101; H04N 21/441 20130101; H04N 21/462 20130101; H04N 21/4725
20130101; H04N 5/445 20130101; H04N 21/25808 20130101; H04N 21/8126
20130101; H04N 21/426 20130101; H04N 21/42684 20130101; H04N
21/44204 20130101; H04N 21/42225 20130101; H04N 21/4756 20130101;
H04N 21/4788 20130101; H04N 21/2187 20130101; H04N 21/2543
20130101; G06F 3/04842 20130101; H04N 1/00448 20130101; H04N
21/25891 20130101; H04N 21/431 20130101; H04N 21/4882 20130101;
H04N 21/6582 20130101; H04N 21/8133 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/781 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/0481 20060101
G06F003/0481 |
Claims
1. (canceled)
2. (canceled)
3. (canceled)
4. (canceled)
5. (canceled)
6. (canceled)
7. A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving a selection, by a
processor of the intelligent television; providing the user
interface, wherein the user interface includes at least two
regions; receiving a second selection in the user interface; and
providing an action, by the processor of the intelligent
television, based on a location, within one of the at least two
regions, in which the second selection was received.
8. An intelligent television system comprising: a memory operable
to store social media data; a processor in communication with the
memory, the processor operable to: execute a live television
subservice operable to: receive a selection; provide the user
interface, wherein the user interface includes at least two
regions; receive a second selection in the user interface; and
provide an action, based on a location, within one of the at least
two regions, in which the second selection was received.
9. (canceled)
10. (canceled)
11. (canceled)
12. (canceled)
13. (canceled)
14. (canceled)
15. The method as defined in claim 7, further comprises determining
in which of the at least two regions the second selection is
made.
16. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the user interface
includes three regions.
17. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the three regions
include a header region, a footer region, and a content region.
18. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein each of the three
regions includes one or more user-selectable user interface
devices.
19. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein at least one of the
user-selectable user interface devices in each of the three regions
is common amongst two or more different user interfaces.
20. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the user interface is
a master panel for the intelligent television, wherein the master
panel is a top level user interface.
21. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein selections available
in each region are contextual.
22. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the header includes a
navigation bar and title elements, wherein the content region
includes a content layout and a scroll item, and wherein the footer
region includes system and contextual information and hot key
related events.
23. The method as defined in claim 7, wherein the action taken in
based on both what was selected and in what region the selection
was made.
24. The intelligent television system as defined in claim 8,
wherein the user interface application is further operable to
determine in which of the at least two regions the second selection
is made, wherein the user interface includes three regions, wherein
the three regions include a header region, a footer region, and a
content region, wherein each of the three regions includes one or
more user-selectable user interface devices, wherein at least one
of the user-selectable user interface devices in each of the three
regions is common amongst two or more different user
interfaces.
25. The intelligent television system as defined in claim 8,
wherein the user interface is a master panel for the intelligent
television, wherein the master panel is a top level user interface,
wherein selections available in each region are contextual.
26. The intelligent television system as defined in claim 8,
wherein the header includes a navigation bar and title elements,
wherein the content region includes a content layout and a scroll
item, and wherein the footer region includes system and contextual
information and hot key related events.
27. The intelligent television system as defined in claim 8,
wherein the action taken in based on both what was selected and in
what region the selection was made.
28. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon
processor executable instructions that cause a computing system to
execute a method, the instructions comprising: instructions to
receive a selection; instructions to provide the user interface,
wherein the user interface includes at least two regions;
instructions to receive a second selection in the user interface;
and instructions to provide an action based on a location, within
one of the at least two regions, in which the second selection was
received.
29. The computer readable medium as defined in claim 28, further
comprises instructions to determine in which of the at least two
regions the second selection is made, wherein the user interface
includes three regions, wherein the three regions include a header
region, a footer region, and a content region, wherein each of the
three regions includes one or more user-selectable user interface
devices, wherein at least one of the user-selectable user interface
devices in each of the three regions is common amongst two or more
different user interfaces.
30. The computer readable medium as defined in claim 28, wherein
the user interface is a master panel for the intelligent
television, wherein the master panel is a top level user interface,
wherein selections available in each region are contextual.
31. The computer readable medium as defined in claim 28, wherein
the header includes a navigation bar and title elements, wherein
the content region includes a content layout and a scroll item, and
wherein the footer region includes system and contextual
information and hot key related events.
32. The computer readable medium as defined in claim 28, wherein
the action taken in based on both what was selected and in what
region the selection was made.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims the benefits of and priority,
under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.119(e), to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.
Nos. 61/684,672 filed Aug. 17, 2012, "Smart TV"; 61/702,650 filed
Sep. 18, 2012, "Smart TV"; 61/697,710 filed Sep. 6, 2012, "Social
TV"; 61/700,182 filed Sep. 12, 2012, "Social TV Roadmap";
61/736,692 filed Dec. 13, 2012, "SmartTV"; 61/798,821 filed Mar.
15, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/804,942 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV";
61/804,998 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/804,971 filed Mar.
25, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/804,990 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV";
61/805,003 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/805,053 filed Mar.
25, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/805,030 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV";
61/805,027 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV"; 61/805,042 filed Mar.
25, 2013, "SmartTV"; and 61/805,038 filed Mar. 25, 2013, "SmartTV."
Each of the aforementioned documents is incorporated herein by
reference in their entirety for all that they teach and for all
purposes.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Consolidation of device features or technological
convergence is in an increasing trend. Technological convergence
describes the tendency for different technological systems to
evolve toward performing similar tasks. As people use more devices,
the need to carry those devices, charge those devices, update
software on those devices, etc. becomes more cumbersome. To
compensate for these problems, technology companies have been
integrating features from different devices into one or two
multi-functional devices. For example, cellular phones are now
capable of accessing the Internet, taking photographs, providing
calendar functions, etc.
[0003] The consolidation trend is now affecting the design and
functionality of devices generally used in the home. For example,
audio receivers can access the Internet, digital video recorders
can store or provide access to digital photographs, etc. The
television in home audio/video systems remains a cornerstone device
because the display function cannot be integrated into other
devices. As such, consolidating home devices leads to integrating
features and functionality into the television. The emergence of
the Smart Television (Smart TV) is evidence of the trend to
consolidate functionality into the television.
[0004] A Smart TV is generally conceived as a device that
integrates access to the Internet and Web 2.0 features into
television sets. The Smart TV represents the trend of technological
convergence between computers and television sets. The Smart TV
generally focuses on online interactive media, Internet TV,
on-demand streaming media, and generally does not focus on
traditional broadcast media. Unfortunately, most Smart TVs have yet
to provide seamless and intuitive user interfaces for navigating
and/or executing the various features of the Smart TV. As such,
there are still issues with the consolidation of features and the
presentation of these features in Smart TVs.
SUMMARY
[0005] There is a need for an Intelligent TV with intuitive user
interfaces and with seamless user interaction capability. These and
other needs are addressed by the various aspects, embodiments,
and/or configurations of the present disclosure. Also, while the
disclosure is presented in terms of exemplary embodiments, it
should be appreciated that individual aspects of the disclosure can
be separately claimed.
[0006] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving, by a processor of the
intelligent television, a selection associated with content in the
intelligent television; in response to the selection, presenting
the user interface associated with the content, wherein the user
interface is associated with a first series of user interfaces;
receiving a back selection to reverse a navigation through the
first series of user interfaces; and presenting a second user
interface, wherein the second user interface is in a second series
of user interfaces, and wherein the first series of user interfaces
is different from the second series of user interfaces.
[0007] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the content
remains in focus while navigating the first series of the second
series.
[0008] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the second
series is hierarchical.
[0009] An aspect of the above method further comprises: determining
if the selection is a last selection in the first series; if the
selection is the last selection in the first series, presenting the
content that is in focus in the user interface; and if the
selection is not the last selection in the first series, awaiting a
next selection.
[0010] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the first
series is categorical.
[0011] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the first
series includes two or more of the following user interfaces in a
predetermined order: a regions view, a genres view, a years view, a
media player, an on-screen controls view, and an application panel
view.
[0012] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the second
series includes two or more of the following user interfaces in a
predetermined order: an application panel view, an on-screen
controls view, a media player, a detail view, and a collection
view.
[0013] An aspect of the above method further comprises: in response
to the selection, determining a type of user interface to be
displayed; determining a size of the user interface to be display;
based on the type and size of the user interface display,
populating information into the display; and displaying the
populated user interface.
[0014] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the size of
the user interface includes two or more of large, medium, or small,
wherein more information about the content is presented in larger
user interfaces.
[0015] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the type of
user interfaces includes one or more of an electronic programming
guide entry, a banner, or a panel, wherein each type of user
interface has at least two interfaces of different sizes.
[0016] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to: execute a user
interface application, the user interface application operable to:
receive, by a processor of the intelligent television, a selection
associated with content in the intelligent television; in response
to the selection, present the user interface associated with the
content, wherein the user interface is associated with a first
series of user interfaces; receive a back selection to reverse a
navigation through the first series of user interfaces; and present
a second user interface, wherein the second user interface is in a
second series of user interfaces, and wherein the first series of
user interfaces is different from the second series of user
interfaces.
[0017] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the content remains in focus while navigating the
first series of the second series, wherein the second series is
hierarchical.
[0018] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes, wherein the user interface application is further
operable to: determine if the selection is a last selection in the
first series; if the selection is the last selection in the first
series, present the content that is in focus in the user interface;
and if the selection is not the last selection in the first series,
await a next selection, wherein the first series is
categorical.
[0019] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the first series includes two or more of the
following user interfaces in a predetermined order: a regions view,
a genres view, a years view, a media player, an on-screen controls
view, and an application panel view, wherein the second series
includes two or more of the following user interfaces in a
predetermined order: an application panel view, an on-screen
controls view, a media player, a detail view, and a collection
view.
[0020] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: in response to the selection, determine a type of user
interface to be displayed; determine a size of the user interface
to be display; based on the type and size of the user interface
display, populate information into the display; display the
populated user interface; wherein the size of the user interface
includes two or more of large, medium, or small, wherein more
information about the content is presented in larger user
interfaces; and wherein the type of user interfaces includes one or
more of an electronic programming guide entry, a banner, or a
panel, wherein each type of user interface has at least two
interfaces of different sizes.
[0021] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive, by a
processor of the intelligent television, a selection associated
with content in the intelligent television; in response to the
selection, instructions to present the user interface associated
with the content, wherein the user interface is associated with a
first series of user interfaces; instructions to receive a back
selection to reverse a navigation through the first series of user
interfaces; and instructions to present a second user interface,
wherein the second user interface is in a second series of user
interfaces, and wherein the first series of user interfaces is
different from the second series of user interfaces.
[0022] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the content remains in focus while navigating the first
series of the second series, wherein the second series is
hierarchical.
[0023] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: determine if the selection is a last
selection in the first series; if the selection is the last
selection in the first series, present the content that is in focus
in the user interface; and if the selection is not the last
selection in the first series, await a next selection, wherein the
first series is categorical.
[0024] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the first series includes two or more of the following user
interfaces in a predetermined order: a regions view, a genres view,
a years view, a media player, an on-screen controls view, and an
application panel view, wherein the second series includes two or
more of the following user interfaces in a predetermined order: an
application panel view, an on-screen controls view, a media player,
a detail view, and a collection view.
[0025] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: in response to the selection, determine
a type of user interface to be displayed; determine a size of the
user interface to be display; based on the type and size of the
user interface display, populate information into the display;
display the populated user interface; wherein the size of the user
interface includes two or more of large, medium, or small, wherein
more information about the content is presented in larger user
interfaces; and wherein the type of user interfaces includes one or
more of an electronic programming guide entry, a banner, or a
panel, wherein each type of user interface has at least two
interfaces of different sizes.
[0026] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving, by a processor of the
intelligent television, a selection associated with a first
navigation bar in the user interface of the intelligent television;
determining if a second user interface, associated with the
selection, can contain a second navigation bar; if a second user
interface, associated with the selection, can contain a second
navigation bar, rendering a horizontal navigation bar as the second
navigation bar in the second user interface; and if a second user
interface, associated with the selection, can not contain a second
navigation bar, rendering a different user interface device for the
second navigation bar in the second user interface.
[0027] An aspect of the above method further comprises determining
one or more of a content and a format of the second navigation
bar.
[0028] An aspect of the above method further comprises determining
one or more of a format and a characteristic of the second user
interface.
[0029] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
determination of if a second user interface, associated with the
selection, can contain a second navigation bar comprises comparing
one or more of the content and the format of the second navigation
bar with one or more of the format and the characteristic of the
second user interface.
[0030] An aspect of the above method includes wherein if the second
navigation bar is too large for the second user interface, the
different user interface device is rendered.
[0031] An aspect of the above method further comprises presenting
the second user interface with the second navigation bar.
[0032] An aspect of the above method further comprises: determining
if a drop-down navigation bar is needed; if the drop-down
navigation bar is needed, rendering the drop-down navigation bar as
the second navigation bar; and if the drop-down navigation bar is
not needed, rendering a vertical navigation bar as the second
navigation bar.
[0033] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the drop-down
navigation bar includes one or more drop down menus associated with
top-level categories presented in the drop-down navigation bar.
[0034] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the vertical
navigation bar includes categories presented vertically in the
second user interface.
[0035] An aspect of the above method further comprises presenting
the second user interface with the second navigation bar.
[0036] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to: execute a user
interface application, the user interface application operable to:
receive a selection associated with a first navigation bar in the
user interface of the intelligent television; determine if a second
user interface, associated with the selection, can contain a second
navigation bar; if a second user interface, associated with the
selection, can contain a second navigation bar, render a horizontal
navigation bar as the second navigation bar in the second user
interface; and if a second user interface, associated with the
selection, can not contain a second navigation bar, render a
different user interface device for the second navigation bar in
the second user interface.
[0037] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: determine one or more of a content and a format of the second
navigation bar; determine one or more of a format and a
characteristic of the second user interface; and present the second
user interface with the second navigation bar.
[0038] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the determination of if a second user interface,
associated with the selection, can contain a second navigation bar
comprises comparing one or more of the content and the format of
the second navigation bar with one or more of the format and the
characteristic of the second user interface, and wherein if the
second navigation bar is too large for the second user interface,
the different user interface device is rendered.
[0039] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: determine if a drop-down navigation bar is needed; if the
drop-down navigation bar is needed, render the drop-down navigation
bar as the second navigation bar; if the drop-down navigation bar
is not needed, render a vertical navigation bar as the second
navigation bar; and wherein the drop-down navigation bar includes
one or more drop down menus associated with top-level categories
presented in the drop-down navigation bar, and wherein the vertical
navigation bar includes categories presented vertically in the
second user interface.
[0040] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to present the second user interface with the second navigation
bar.
[0041] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive a
selection associated with a first navigation bar in the user
interface of the intelligent television; instructions to determine
if a second user interface, associated with the selection, can
contain a second navigation bar; if a second user interface,
associated with the selection, can contain a second navigation bar,
instructions to render a horizontal navigation bar as the second
navigation bar in the second user interface; and if a second user
interface, associated with the selection, can not contain a second
navigation bar, instructions to render a different user interface
device for the second navigation bar in the second user
interface.
[0042] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: determine one or more of a content and a
format of the second navigation bar; determine one or more of a
format and a characteristic of the second user interface; and
present the second user interface with the second navigation
bar.
[0043] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the determination of if a second user interface, associated
with the selection, can contain a second navigation bar comprises
comparing one or more of the content and the format of the second
navigation bar with one or more of the format and the
characteristic of the second user interface, and wherein if the
second navigation bar is too large for the second user interface,
the different user interface device is rendered.
[0044] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: determine if a drop-down navigation bar
is needed; if the drop-down navigation bar is needed, render the
drop-down navigation bar as the second navigation bar; if the
drop-down navigation bar is not needed, render a vertical
navigation bar as the second navigation bar; and wherein the
drop-down navigation bar includes one or more drop down menus
associated with top-level categories presented in the drop-down
navigation bar, and wherein the vertical navigation bar includes
categories presented vertically in the second user interface.
[0045] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to present the second user interface with
the second navigation bar.
[0046] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving an action, by a
processor of the intelligent television, wherein the action
involves a notification for a user; providing the notification to
the user; dismissing the notification; and providing a missing
notification icon in the user interface, wherein the missing
notification icon persists.
[0047] An aspect of the above method further comprises determining
whether the user reacts to the notification, wherein the
notification is dismissed if the user does not react to the
notification.
[0048] An aspect of the above method includes wherein a
predetermined period of time elapses before the determination that
the user did not react to the notification.
[0049] An aspect of the above method further comprises: if the user
reacts to the notification, receiving a reaction to the
notification; providing information about the notification;
receiving an action or selection, from the user, based on the
information; and conducting an second action based on the user's
selection or the user's action.
[0050] An aspect of the above method further comprises: determining
if the user takes action on the notification icon; if the user
takes action on the notification icon, dismissing the notification
icon; and if the user does not take action on the notification
icon, persisting the notification icon.
[0051] An aspect of the above method includes wherein taking action
on the notification icon comprises: receiving one of a reaction to
the notification icon or a dismissal of the notification icon; if a
reaction to the notification is received: providing information
about the notification; receiving an action or selection, from the
user, based on the information; conducting a second action based on
the user's selection or the user's action; and if a dismissal of
the notification icon is received, dismissing the notification
icon.
[0052] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
notification is a user interface display having information about
the action.
[0053] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
notification icon is an icon in the user interface that does not
provide information about the action.
[0054] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
notification icon is displayed in a corner of the user
interface.
[0055] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
notification icon is selectable to view the notification.
[0056] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to: execute a user
interface application operable to: receive an action, wherein the
action involves a notification for a user; provide the notification
to the user; dismiss the notification; and provide a missing
notification icon in the user interface, wherein the missing
notification icon persists.
[0057] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to determine whether the user reacts to the notification, wherein
the notification is dismissed if the user does not react to the
notification, wherein a predetermined period of time elapses before
the determination that the user did not react to the
notification.
[0058] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: if the user reacts to the notification, receive a reaction to
the notification; provide information about the notification;
receive an action or selection, from the user, based on the
information; and conduct an second action based on the user's
selection or the user's action.
[0059] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: determine if the user takes action on the notification icon,
wherein take action on the notification icon comprises: receive one
of a reaction to the notification icon or a dismissal of the
notification icon; if a reaction to the notification is received:
provide information about the notification; receive an action or
selection, from the user, based on the information; conduct a
second action based on the user's selection or the user's action;
if a dismissal of the notification icon is received, dismiss the
notification icon; if the user takes action on the notification
icon, dismiss the notification icon; and if the user does not take
action on the notification icon, persist the notification icon.
[0060] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the notification is a user interface display
having information about the action, wherein the notification icon
is an icon in the user interface that does not provide information
about the action, wherein the notification icon is displayed in a
corner of the user interface, and wherein the notification icon is
selectable to view the notification.
[0061] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive an
action, wherein the action involves a notification for a user;
instructions to provide the notification to the user; instructions
to dismiss the notification; and instructions to provide a missing
notification icon in the user interface, wherein the missing
notification icon persists.
[0062] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the user interface application is further operable to
determine whether the user reacts to the notification, wherein the
notification is dismissed if the user does not react to the
notification, wherein a predetermined period of time elapses before
the determination that the user did not react to the
notification.
[0063] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: if the user reacts to the notification,
receive a reaction to the notification; provide information about
the notification; receive an action or selection, from the user,
based on the information; and conduct an second action based on the
user's selection or the user's action.
[0064] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: determine if the user takes action on
the notification icon, wherein take action on the notification icon
comprises: receive one of a reaction to the notification icon or a
dismissal of the notification icon; if a reaction to the
notification is received: provide information about the
notification; receive an action or selection, from the user, based
on the information; conduct a second action based on the user's
selection or the user's action; if a dismissal of the notification
icon is received, dismiss the notification icon; if the user takes
action on the notification icon, dismiss the notification icon; and
if the user does not take action on the notification icon, persist
the notification icon.
[0065] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the notification is a user interface display having
information about the action, wherein the notification icon is an
icon in the user interface that does not provide information about
the action, wherein the notification icon is displayed in a corner
of the user interface, and wherein the notification icon is
selectable to view the notification.
[0066] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving a selection, by a
processor of the intelligent television; providing the user
interface, wherein the user interface includes at least two
regions; receiving a second selection in the user interface; and
providing an action, by the processor of the intelligent
television, based on a location, within one of the at least two
regions, in which the second selection was received.
[0067] An aspect of the above method further comprises determining
in which of the at least two regions the second selection is
made.
[0068] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the user
interface includes three regions.
[0069] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the three
regions include a header region, a footer region, and a content
region.
[0070] An aspect of the above method includes wherein each of the
three regions includes one or more user-selectable user interface
devices.
[0071] An aspect of the above method includes wherein at least one
of the user-selectable user interface devices in each of the three
regions is common amongst two or more different user
interfaces.
[0072] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the user
interface is a master panel for the intelligent television, wherein
the master panel is a top level user interface.
[0073] An aspect of the above method includes wherein selections
available in each region are contextual.
[0074] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the header
includes a navigation bar and title elements, wherein the content
region includes a content layout and a scroll item, and wherein the
footer region includes system and contextual information and hot
key related events.
[0075] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the action
taken in based on both what was selected and in what region the
selection was made.
[0076] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to: execute a live
television subservice operable to: receive a selection; provide the
user interface, wherein the user interface includes at least two
regions; receive a second selection in the user interface; and
provide an action, based on a location, within one of the at least
two regions, in which the second selection was received.
[0077] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to determine in which of the at least two regions the second
selection is made, wherein the user interface includes three
regions, wherein the three regions include a header region, a
footer region, and a content region, wherein each of the three
regions includes one or more user-selectable user interface
devices, wherein at least one of the user-selectable user interface
devices in each of the three regions is common amongst two or more
different user interfaces.
[0078] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface is a master panel for the
intelligent television, wherein the master panel is a top level
user interface, wherein selections available in each region are
contextual.
[0079] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the header includes a navigation bar and title
elements, wherein the content region includes a content layout and
a scroll item, and wherein the footer region includes system and
contextual information and hot key related events.
[0080] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the action taken in based on both what was
selected and in what region the selection was made.
[0081] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive a
selection; instructions to provide the user interface, wherein the
user interface includes at least two regions; instructions to
receive a second selection in the user interface; and instructions
to provide an action based on a location, within one of the at
least two regions, in which the second selection was received.
[0082] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to determine in which of the at least two
regions the second selection is made, wherein the user interface
includes three regions, wherein the three regions include a header
region, a footer region, and a content region, wherein each of the
three regions includes one or more user-selectable user interface
devices, wherein at least one of the user-selectable user interface
devices in each of the three regions is common amongst two or more
different user interfaces.
[0083] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the user interface is a master panel for the intelligent
television, wherein the master panel is a top level user interface,
wherein selections available in each region are contextual.
[0084] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the header includes a navigation bar and title elements,
wherein the content region includes a content layout and a scroll
item, and wherein the footer region includes system and contextual
information and hot key related events.
[0085] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the action taken in based on both what was selected and in
what region the selection was made.
[0086] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving, by a processor of the
intelligent television, a selection in the user interface for the
intelligent television; determining a selection characteristic for
the selection; determining a content characteristic for the content
associated with the selection; and based on the selection
characteristic and the content characteristic, affecting a change
in the user interface.
[0087] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the content
characteristic is a type of content being displayed in the user
interface.
[0088] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the content
includes a picture.
[0089] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the picture
has a configuration characteristic.
[0090] An aspect of the above method further comprises changing a
thumbnail representing the picture in a user interface device,
wherein the thumbnail has a configuration that mimics the picture
configuration.
[0091] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the picture
configuration is one of portrait, landscape, or undefined.
[0092] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the user
interface device is a social media message having the picture
associated therewith.
[0093] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the selection
characteristic is a transition between channels of live
television.
[0094] An aspect of the above method further comprises blurring
content currently being displayed.
[0095] An aspect of the above method includes wherein a second
content is displayed on the intelligent television from a next
channel of live television after the content is blurred.
[0096] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to execute a statistics
subservice operable to: execute an user interface application
operable to: receive a selection in the user interface for the
intelligent television; determine a selection characteristic for
the selection; determine a content characteristic for the content
associated with the selection; and based on the selection
characteristic and the content characteristic, affect a change in
the user interface.
[0097] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the content characteristic is a type of content
being displayed in the user interface, wherein the content includes
a picture, and wherein the picture has a configuration
characteristic.
[0098] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to change a thumbnail representing the picture in a user interface
device, wherein the thumbnail has a configuration that mimics the
picture configuration, wherein the picture configuration is one of
portrait, landscape, or undefined.
[0099] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface device is a social media
message having the picture associated therewith, and wherein the
selection characteristic is a transition between channels of live
television.
[0100] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to blur content currently being displayed, wherein a second content
is displayed on the intelligent television from a next channel of
live television after the content is blurred.
[0101] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive a
selection in the user interface for the intelligent television;
instructions to determine a selection characteristic for the
selection; instructions to determine a content characteristic for
the content associated with the selection; and based on the
selection characteristic and the content characteristic,
instructions to affect a change in the user interface.
[0102] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the content characteristic is a type of content being
displayed in the user interface, wherein the content includes a
picture, and wherein the picture has a configuration
characteristic.
[0103] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to change a thumbnail representing the
picture in a user interface device, wherein the thumbnail has a
configuration that mimics the picture configuration, wherein the
picture configuration is one of portrait, landscape, or
undefined.
[0104] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the user interface device is a social media message having
the picture associated therewith, and wherein the selection
characteristic is a transition between channels of live
television.
[0105] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to blur content currently being displayed,
wherein a second content is displayed on the intelligent television
from a next channel of live television after the content is
blurred.
[0106] A method for providing one of two types of user interfaces
in an intelligent television, the method comprising: receiving a
selection for the user interface, wherein the user interface
provides information about content; determining a type of user
interface selection; providing a first user interface for a first
type of selection; and providing a second user interface for a
second type of selection.
[0107] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the first
type of selection is for a content selection user interface.
[0108] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the first
user interface is a Fibonacci view.
[0109] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the Fibonacci
view provides selectable content thumbnails arranged in a Fibonacci
spiral.
[0110] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
thumbnails are arranged in the Fibonacci spiral based on a
characteristic of the content associated with the thumbnail.
[0111] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the
characteristic is one or more of an amount of content, a most
viewed statistic, a newest statistic, or a most favorite
statistic.
[0112] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the second
type of selection is for a timeline user interface.
[0113] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the second
user interface is a timeline view.
[0114] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the timeline
view provides selectable content thumbnails arranged in timeline
from oldest content at a first side of the timeline view to newest
content at a second side of the timeline view.
[0115] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the timeline
view includes a demarcation to indicate a change in date to which
the content is associated.
[0116] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to execute a statistics
subservice operable to: execute an user interface application
operable to: receive a selection for the user interface, wherein
the user interface provides information about content; determine a
type of user interface selection; provide a first user interface
for a first type of selection; and provide a second user interface
for a second type of selection.
[0117] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the first type of selection is for a content
selection user interface, wherein the first user interface is a
Fibonacci view, and wherein the Fibonacci view provides selectable
content thumbnails arranged in a Fibonacci spiral.
[0118] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the thumbnails are arranged in the Fibonacci
spiral based on a characteristic of the content associated with the
thumbnail, and wherein the characteristic is one or more of an
amount of content, a most viewed statistic, a newest statistic, or
a most favorite statistic.
[0119] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the second type of selection is for a timeline
user interface, wherein the second user interface is a timeline
view, and wherein the timeline view provides selectable content
thumbnails arranged in timeline from oldest content at a first side
of the timeline view to newest content at a second side of the
timeline view.
[0120] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the timeline view includes a demarcation to
indicate a change in date to which the content is associated.
[0121] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive a
selection for the user interface, wherein the user interface
provides information about content; instructions to determine a
type of user interface selection; instructions to provide a first
user interface for a first type of selection; and instructions to
provide a second user interface for a second type of selection.
[0122] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the first type of selection is for a content selection user
interface, wherein the first user interface is a Fibonacci view,
and wherein the Fibonacci view provides selectable content
thumbnails arranged in a Fibonacci spiral.
[0123] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the thumbnails are arranged in the Fibonacci spiral based
on a characteristic of the content associated with the thumbnail,
and wherein the characteristic is one or more of an amount of
content, a most viewed statistic, a newest statistic, or a most
favorite statistic.
[0124] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the second type of selection is for a timeline user
interface, wherein the second user interface is a timeline view,
and wherein the timeline view provides selectable content
thumbnails arranged in timeline from oldest content at a first side
of the timeline view to newest content at a second side of the
timeline view.
[0125] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the timeline view includes a demarcation to indicate a
change in date to which the content is associated.
[0126] A method for providing a user interface in an intelligent
television, the method comprising: receiving, by a processor of the
intelligent television, a selection for an unrelated search,
wherein the user interface of the intelligent television is
displaying a first content, and wherein the unrelated search does
not apply to the first content; and providing a search panel above
a portion of the content to search for a second content.
[0127] An aspect of the above method further comprises receiving
search terms in the search panel that are associated with the
second content.
[0128] An aspect of the above method further comprises continuing
to display the first content while receiving the search terms.
[0129] An aspect of the above method further comprises continuing
to display the first content while searching for the second
content.
[0130] An aspect of the above method further comprises providing
search results based on the search terms and associated with the
second content.
[0131] An aspect of the above method further comprises continuing
to display the first content while providing the search
results.
[0132] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the first
content is a first live television program, and the second content
is a second live television program.
[0133] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the search
panel includes an area to receive the search terms.
[0134] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the search
panel includes a second area to provide two or more search
results.
[0135] An aspect of the above method includes wherein the search
panel is provided to a side of the user interface, wherein the
search panel partially obstructs a view of the first content, and
wherein the first content is viewed in a second portion of the user
interface to the right of the search panel.
[0136] An intelligent television system comprising: a memory
operable to store social media data; a processor in communication
with the memory, the processor operable to execute a statistics
subservice operable to: execute an user interface application
operable to: receive a selection for an unrelated search, wherein
the user interface of the intelligent television is displaying a
first content, and wherein the unrelated search does not apply to
the first content; and provide a search panel above a portion of
the content to search for a second content.
[0137] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the user interface application is further operable
to: receive search terms in the search panel that are associated
with the second content; continue to display the first content
while receiving the search terms; continue to display the first
content while searching for the second content; provide search
results based on the search terms and associated with the second
content; and continue to display the first content while providing
the search results.
[0138] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the first content is a first live television
program, and the second content is a second live television
program.
[0139] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the search panel includes an area to receive the
search terms, and wherein the search panel includes a second area
to provide two or more search results.
[0140] An aspect of the above intelligent television system
includes wherein the search panel is provided to a side of the user
interface, wherein the search panel partially obstructs a view of
the first content, and wherein the first content is viewed in a
second portion of the user interface to the right of the search
panel.
[0141] A computer readable medium having stored thereon processor
executable instructions that cause a computing system to execute a
method, the instructions comprising: instructions to receive a
selection for an unrelated search, wherein the user interface of
the intelligent television is displaying a first content, and
wherein the unrelated search does not apply to the first content;
and instructions to provide a search panel above a portion of the
content to search for a second content.
[0142] An aspect of the above computer readable medium further
comprises instructions to: receive search terms in the search panel
that are associated with the second content; continue to display
the first content while receiving the search terms; continue to
display the first content while searching for the second content;
provide search results based on the search terms and associated
with the second content; and continue to display the first content
while providing the search results.
[0143] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the first content is a first live television program, and
the second content is a second live television program.
[0144] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the search panel includes an area to receive the search
terms, and wherein the search panel includes a second area to
provide two or more search results.
[0145] An aspect of the above computer readable medium includes
wherein the search panel is provided to a side of the user
interface, wherein the search panel partially obstructs a view of
the first content, and wherein the first content is viewed in a
second portion of the user interface to the right of the search
panel.
[0146] The systems and methods herein provide new user interfaces
for processes associated with the Intelligent TV. The user
interfaces have an intuitive layout, structure, organization, and
methodology. Thus, the user can more easily learn and navigate the
options of the Intelligent TV.
[0147] The phrases "at least one", "one or more", and "and/or" are
open-ended expressions that are both conjunctive and disjunctive in
operation. For example, each of the expressions "at least one of A,
B and C", "at least one of A, B, or C", "one or more of A, B, and
C", "one or more of A, B, or C" and "A, B, and/or C" means A alone,
B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C
together, or A, B and C together.
[0148] The term "a" or "an" entity refers to one or more of that
entity. As such, the terms "a" (or "an"), "one or more" and "at
least one" can be used interchangeably herein. It is also to be
noted that the terms "comprising", "including", and "having" can be
used interchangeably.
[0149] The term "automatic" and variations thereof, as used herein,
refers to any process or operation done without material human
input when the process or operation is performed. However, a
process or operation can be automatic, even though performance of
the process or operation uses material or immaterial human input,
if the input is received before performance of the process or
operation. Human input is deemed to be material if such input
influences how the process or operation will be performed. Human
input that consents to the performance of the process or operation
is not deemed to be "material."
[0150] A "blog" (a blend of the term web log) is a type of website
or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from
time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with
regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other
material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed
in reverse-chronological order.
[0151] A "blogging service" is a blog-publishing service that
allows private or multi-user blogs with time-stamped entries.
[0152] The term "cable TV" refers to a system of distributing
television programs to subscribers via radio frequency (RF) signals
transmitted through coaxial cables or light pulses through
fiber-optic cables. This contrasts with traditional broadcast
television (terrestrial television) in which the television signal
is transmitted over the air by radio waves and received by a
television antenna attached to the television.
[0153] The term "channel" or "television channel," as used herein,
can be a physical or virtual channel over which a television
station or television network is distributed. A physical cannel in
analog television can be an amount of bandwidth, typically 6, 7, or
8 MHz, that occupies a predetermine channel frequency. A virtual
channel is a representation, in cable or satellite television, of a
data stream for a particular television media provider (e.g., CDS,
TNT, HBO, etc.).
[0154] The term "computer-readable medium," as used herein, refers
to any tangible storage and/or transmission medium that participate
in providing instructions to a processor for execution. Such a
medium may take many forms, including but not limited to,
non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media.
Non-volatile media includes, for example, NVRAM, or magnetic or
optical disks. Volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as main
memory. Common forms of computer-readable media include, for
example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape,
or any other magnetic medium, magneto-optical medium, a CD-ROM, any
other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, any other physical
medium with patterns of holes, a RAM, a PROM, and EPROM, a
FLASH-EPROM, a solid state medium like a memory card, any other
memory chip or cartridge, a carrier wave as described hereinafter,
or any other medium from which a computer can read. A digital file
attachment to e-mail or other self-contained information archive or
set of archives is considered a distribution medium equivalent to a
tangible storage medium. When the computer-readable media is
configured as a database, it is to be understood that the database
may be any type of database, such as relational, hierarchical,
object-oriented, and/or the like. Accordingly, the disclosure is
considered to include a tangible storage medium or distribution
medium and prior art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in
which the software implementations of the present disclosure are
stored.
[0155] The term "enhanced television" (ETV) refers to a collection
of specifications developed under the OpenCable project of
CableLabs (Cable Television Laboratories, Inc.) that define an ETV
Application consisting of resources (files) adhering to the
Enhanced TV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF) content format as well
as PNG images, JPEG images, and PFR downloadable fonts. An ETV
application is normally delivered through an MPEG transport stream
and accompanies an MPEG program containing video and audio
elementary streams. An "ETV Application" is a collection of
resources (files) that include one or more EBIF resources that
represent viewable information in the form of pages. Two forms of a
given ETV Application may be distinguished: (1) an interchange form
and (2) an execution form. The interchange form of an ETV
Application consists of the resources (files) that represent the
compiled application prior to its actual execution by an ETV User
Agent. The execution form of an ETV Application consists of the
stored, and possibly mutated forms of these resources while being
decoded, presented, and executed by an ETV User Agent. An "ETV User
Agent" is a software component that operates on a set-top box, a
television, or any other computing environment capable of
receiving, decoding, presenting, and processing an ETV Application.
This component usually provides, along with its host hardware
environment, one or more mechanisms for an end-user to navigate and
interact with the multimedia content represented by ETV
Applications.
[0156] The term "high-definition television" (HDTV) provides a
resolution that is substantially higher than that of
standard-definition television. HDTV may be transmitted in various
formats, namely 1080p-1920.times.1080p: 2,073,600 pixels
(approximately 2.1 megapixels) per frame, 1080i (which is typically
either 1920.times.1080i: 1,036,800 pixels (approximately 1
megapixel) per field or 2,073,600 pixels (approximately 2.1
megapixels) per frame or 1440.times.1080i:[1] 777,600 pixels
(approximately 0.8 megapixels) per field or 1,555,200 pixels
(approximately 1.6 megapixels) per frame), or 720p-1280.times.720p:
921,600 pixels (approximately 0.9 megapixels) per frame. As will be
appreciated, "frame size" in pixels is defined as number of
horizontal pixels.times.number of vertical pixels, for example
1280.times.720 or 1920.times.1080. Often the number of horizontal
pixels is implied from context and is omitted, as in the case of
720p and 1080p, "scanning system" is identified with the letter "p"
for progressive scanning or "i" for interlaced scanning, and "frame
rate" is identified as number of video frames per second. For
interlaced systems an alternative form of specifying number of
fields per second is often used. For purposes of this disclosure,
"high-definition television" is deemed to include other
high-definition analog or digital video formats, including ultra
high definition television.
[0157] The term "internet television" (otherwise known as Internet
TV, Online Television, or Online TV) is the digital distribution of
television content via the Internet. It should not be confused with
Web television--short programs or videos created by a wide variety
of companies and individuals, or Internet protocol television
(IPTV)--an emerging internet technology standard for use by
television broadcasters. Internet Television is a general term that
covers the delivery of television shows and other video content
over the internet by video streaming technology, typically by major
traditional television broadcasters. It does not describe a
technology used to deliver content (see Internet protocol
television). Internet television has become very popular through
services such as RTE Player in Ireland; BBC iPlayer, 4oD, ITV
Player (also STV Player and UTV Player) and Demand Five in the
United Kingdom; Hutu in the United States; Nederland 24 in the
Netherlands; ABC iview and Australia Live TV in Australia; Tivibu
in Turkey; and iWanTV! in the Philippines.
[0158] The term "internet protocol television" (IPTV) refers to a
system through which television services are delivered using the
Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the
Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional
terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats. IPTV
services may be classified into three main groups, namely live
television, with or without interactivity related to the current TV
show; time-shifted television: catch-up TV (replays a TV show that
was broadcast hours or days ago), start-over TV (replays the
current TV show from its beginning); and video on demand (VOD):
browse a catalog of videos, not related to TV programming IPTV is
distinguished from Internet television by its on-going
standardization process (e.g., European Telecommunications
Standards Institute) and preferential deployment scenarios in
subscriber-based telecommunications networks with high-speed access
channels into end-user premises via set-top boxes or other
customer-premises equipment.
[0159] The term "silo," as used herein, can be a logical
representation of an input, source, or application. An input can be
a device or devices (e.g., DVD, VCR, etc.) electrically connected
to the television through a port (e.g., HDMI, video/audio inputs,
etc.) or through a network (e.g., LAN WAN, etc.). Rather than a
device or devices, the input could be configured as an electrical
or physical connection to one or more devices. A source,
particularly a content source, can be a data service that provides
content (e.g., a media center, a file system, etc.). An application
can be a software service that provides a particular type of
function (e.g., Live TV, Video on Demand, User Applications,
photograph display, etc.). The silo, as a logical representation,
can have an associated definition or property, such as a setting,
feature, or other characteristic.
[0160] The term "panel," as used herein, can mean a user interface
displayed in at least a portion of the display. The panel may be
interactive (e.g., accepts user input) or informational (e.g., does
not accept user input). A panel may be translucent whereby the
panel obscures but does not mask the underlying content being
displayed in the display. Panels may be provided in response to a
user input from a button or remote control interface.
[0161] The term "screen," as used herein, refers to a physical
structure that includes one or more hardware components that
provide the device with the ability to render a user interface
and/or receive user input. A screen can encompass any combination
of gesture capture region, a touch sensitive display, and/or a
configurable area. The device can have one or more physical screens
embedded in the hardware. However a screen may also include an
external peripheral device that may be attached and detached from
the device. In embodiments, multiple external devices may be
attached to the device. For example, another screen may be included
with a remote control unit that interfaces with the Intelligent
TV.
[0162] The term "media" of "multimedia," as used herein, refers to
content that may assume one of a combination of different content
forms. Multimedia can include one or more of, but is not limited
to, text, audio, still images, animation, video, or interactivity
content forms.
[0163] The term "Intelligent TV," as used herein, refers to a
television configured to provide one or more intuitive user
interfaces and interactions based on a unique application platform
and architecture. The Intelligent TV utilizes processing resources
associated with the television to integrate Internet connectivity
with parallel application functionality. This integration allows a
user the ability to intuitively access various sources of media and
content (e.g., Internet, over-the-top content, on-demand streaming
media, over-the-air broadcast media, and/or other forms of
information) via the Intelligent TV in a quick and efficient
manner. The Intelligent TV can be a soft television. Although the
Intelligent TV disclosed herein may comprise one or more components
of a "smart TV," it is an aspect of the Intelligent TV to provide
expanded intuitive user interaction capability for navigating and
executing the various features of the television. A "smart TV,"
sometimes referred to as a connected TV, or hybrid TV (not to be
confused with IPTV, Internet TV, or with Web TV), describes a trend
of integration of the Internet and Web 2.0 features into television
sets and set-top boxes, as well as the technological convergence
between computers and these television sets/set-top boxes. The
smart TV devices have a higher focus on online interactive media,
Internet TV, over-the-top content, as well as on-demand streaming
media, and less focus on traditional broadcast media than
traditional television sets and set-top boxes. As can be
appreciated, the Intelligent TV encompasses a broader range of
technology than that of the smart TV defined above.
[0164] The term "television" is a telecommunication medium, device
(or set) or set of associated devices, programming, and/or
transmission for transmitting and receiving moving images that can
be monochrome (black-and-white) or colored, with or without
accompanying sound. Different countries use one of the three main
video standards for TVs, namely PAL, NTSC or SECAM. Television is
most commonly used for displaying broadcast television signals. The
broadcast television system is typically disseminated via radio
transmissions on designated channels in the 54-890 MHz frequency
band. A common television set comprises multiple internal
electronic circuits, including those for receiving and decoding
broadcast signals. A visual display device which lacks a tuner is
properly called a video monitor, rather than a television. A
television may be different from other monitors or displays based
on the distance maintained between the user and the television when
the user watches the media and based on the inclusion of a tuner or
other electronic circuit to receive the broadcast television
signal.
[0165] The term "Live TV," as used herein, refers to a television
production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the
present.
[0166] The term "standard-definition television" (SDTV) is a
television system that uses a resolution that is not considered to
be either high-definition television (HDTV 720p and 1080p) or
enhanced-definition television (EDTV 480p). The two common SDTV
signal types are 576i, with 576 interlaced lines of resolution,
derived from the European-developed PAL and SECAM systems; and 480i
based on the American National Television System Committee NTSC
system. In the US, digital SDTV is broadcast in the same 4:3 aspect
ratio as NTSC signals. However, in other parts of the world that
used the PAL or SECAM analog standards, standard-definition
television is now usually shown with a 16:9 aspect ratio. Standards
that support digital SDTV broadcast include DVB, ATSC and ISDB.
Television signals are transmitted in digital form, and their
pixels have a rectangular shape, as opposed to square pixels that
are used in modern computer monitors and modern implementations of
HDTV. The table below summarizes pixel aspect ratios for various
kinds of SDTV video signal. Note that the actual image (be it 4:3
or 16:9) is always contained in the center 704 horizontal pixels of
the digital frame, regardless of how many horizontal pixels (704 or
720) are used. In case of digital video signal having 720
horizontal pixels, only the center 704 pixels contain actual 4:3 or
16:9 image, and the 8 pixel wide stripes from either side are
called nominal analogue blanking and should be discarded before
displaying the image. Nominal analogue blanking should not be
confused with overscan, as overscan areas are part of the actual
4:3 or 16:9 image.
[0167] The term "video on demand (VOD)," as used herein, refers to
systems and processes which allow users to select and watch/listen
to video or audio content on demand. VOD systems may stream
content, to view the content in real time, or download the content
to a storage medium for viewing at a later time.
[0168] The term "satellite positioning system receiver" refers to a
wireless receiver or transceiver to receive and/or send location
signals from and/or to a satellite positioning system, such as the
Global Positioning System ("GPS") (US), GLONASS (Russia), Galileo
positioning system (EU), Compass navigation system (China), and
Regional Navigational Satellite System (India).
[0169] The term "display," as used herein, refers to at least a
portion of a screen used to display the output of the television to
a user. A display may be a single-screen display or a multi-screen
display, referred to as a composite display. A composite display
can encompass the touch sensitive display of one or more screens. A
single physical screen can include multiple displays that are
managed as separate logical displays. Thus, different content can
be displayed on the separate displays although part of the same
physical screen.
[0170] The term "displayed image," as used herein, refers to an
image produced on the display. A typical displayed image is a
television broadcast or menu. The displayed image may occupy all or
a portion of the display.
[0171] The term "display orientation," as used herein, refers to
the way in which a rectangular display is oriented by a user for
viewing. The two most common types of display orientation are
portrait and landscape. In landscape mode, the display is oriented
such that the width of the display is greater than the height of
the display (such as a 4:3 ratio, which is 4 units wide and 3 units
tall, or a 16:9 ratio, which is 16 units wide and 9 units tall).
Stated differently, the longer dimension of the display is oriented
substantially horizontal in landscape mode while the shorter
dimension of the display is oriented substantially vertical. In the
portrait mode, by contrast, the display is oriented such that the
width of the display is less than the height of the display. Stated
differently, the shorter dimension of the display is oriented
substantially horizontal in the portrait mode while the longer
dimension of the display is oriented substantially vertical.
[0172] The term "module," as used herein, refers to any known or
later developed hardware, software, firmware, artificial
intelligence, fuzzy logic, or combination of hardware and software
that is capable of performing the functionality associated with
that element.
[0173] The terms "determine," "calculate" and "compute," and
variations thereof, as used herein, are used interchangeably and
include any type of methodology, process, mathematical operation or
technique.
[0174] The term "touch screen" or "touchscreen" refer to screen
that can receive user contact or other tactile input, such as a
stylus. The touch screen may sense user contact in a number of
different ways, such as by a change in an electrical parameter
(e.g., resistance or capacitance), acoustic wave variations,
infrared radiation proximity detection, light variation detection,
and the like. In a resistive touch screen, for example, normally
separated conductive and resistive metallic layers in the screen
pass an electrical current. When a user touches the screen, the two
layers make contact in the contacted location, whereby a change in
electrical field is noted and the coordinates of the contacted
location calculated. In a capacitive touch screen, a capacitive
layer stores electrical charge, which is discharged to the user
upon contact with the touch screen, causing a decrease in the
charge of the capacitive layer. The decrease is measured, and the
contacted location coordinates determined. In a surface acoustic
wave touch screen, an acoustic wave is transmitted through the
screen, and the acoustic wave is disturbed by user contact. A
receiving transducer detects the user contact instance and
determines the contacted location coordinates.
[0175] The term "web television" is original television content
produced for broadcast via the World Wide Web. Some major
distributors of web television are YouTube, Myspace, Newgrounds,
Blip.tv, and Crackle.
[0176] The terms "instant message" and "instant messaging" refer to
a form of real-time text communication between two or more people,
typically based on typed text.
[0177] The term "internet search engine" refers to a web search
engine designed to search for information on the World Wide Web and
FTP servers. The search results are generally presented in a list
of results often referred to as SERPS, or "search engine results
pages". The information may consist of web pages, images,
information and other types of files. Some search engines also mine
data available in databases or open directories. Web search engines
work by storing information about many web pages, which they
retrieve from the html itself. These pages are retrieved by a Web
crawler (sometimes also known as a spider)--an automated Web
browser which follows every link on the site. The contents of each
page are then analyzed to determine how it should be indexed (for
example, words are extracted from the titles, headings, or special
fields called meta tags). Data about web pages are stored in an
index database for use in later queries. Some search engines, such
as Google.TM., store all or part of the source page (referred to as
a cache) as well as information about the web pages, whereas
others, such as AltaVista.TM., store every word of every page they
find.
[0178] The terms "online community", "e-community", or "virtual
community" mean a group of people that primarily interact via a
computer network, rather than face to face, for social,
professional, educational or other purposes. The interaction can
use a variety of media formats, including wilds, blogs, chat rooms,
Internet forums, instant messaging, email, and other forms of
electronic media. Many media formats are used in social software
separately or in combination, including text-based chatrooms and
forums that use voice, video text or avatars.
[0179] The term "remote control" refers to a component of an
electronics device, most commonly a television set, DVD player
and/or home theater system for operating the device wirelessly,
typically from a short line-of-sight distance. Remote control
normally uses infrared and/or radio frequency (RF) signaling and
can include WiFi, wireless USB, Bluetooth.TM. connectivity, motion
sensor enabled capabilities and/or voice control. A touchscreen
remote control is a handheld remote control device which uses a
touchscreen user interface to replace most of the hard, built-in
physical buttons used in normal remote control devices.
[0180] The term "satellite TV" refers to television programming
delivered by the means of communications satellites and received by
an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic reflector generally
referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is
concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an external
set-top box or a satellite tuner module built into a TV set.
[0181] The term "social network service" is a service provider that
builds online communities of people, who share interests and/or
activities, or who are interested in exploring the interests and
activities of others. Most social network services are web-based
and provide a variety of ways for users to interact, such as e-mail
and instant messaging services.
[0182] The term "social network" refers to a web-based social
network.
[0183] The term "gesture" refers to a user action that expresses an
intended idea, action, meaning, result, and/or outcome. The user
action can include manipulating a device (e.g., opening or closing
a device, changing a device orientation, moving a trackball or
wheel, etc.), movement of a body part in relation to the device,
movement of an implement or tool in relation to the device, audio
inputs, etc. A gesture may be made on a device (such as on the
screen) or with the device to interact with the device.
[0184] The term "gesture capture" refers to a sense or otherwise a
detection of an instance and/or type of user gesture. The gesture
capture can occur in one or more areas of the screen. A gesture
region can be on the display, where it may be referred to as a
touch sensitive display or off the display where it may be referred
to as a gesture capture area.
[0185] The term "electronic address" refers to any contactable
address, including a telephone number, instant message handle,
e-mail address, Universal Resource Locator (URL), Universal
Resource Identifier (URI), Address of Record (AOR), electronic
alias in a database, like addresses, and combinations thereof.
[0186] It shall be understood that the term "means," as used
herein, shall be given its broadest possible interpretation in
accordance with 35 U.S.C., Section 112(f). Accordingly, a claim
incorporating the term "means" shall cover all structures,
materials, or acts set forth herein, and all of the equivalents
thereof. Further, the structures, materials or acts and the
equivalents thereof shall include all those described in the
summary of the invention, brief description of the drawings,
detailed description, abstract, and claims themselves.
[0187] The term "social media" can refer to the means of
interactions among people in which they create, share, and exchange
information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.
Embodiments of social media can include a group of Internet-based
applications that allow the creation and exchange of content.
Furthermore, social media may depend on mobile and web-based
technologies to create highly interactive platforms through which
individuals and communities share, co-create, discuss, and modify
user-generated content. Social media differentiates from
traditional/industrial media in many aspects such as quality,
reach, frequency, usability, immediacy, and permanence.
[0188] The term "social media site" can refer to a social network
or social network service.
[0189] The term "social media posting" can refer to an item of
content or a provider of content on a social media site.
[0190] The term "social media poster" can refer to an author of an
item of content or a provider of content on a social media
site.
[0191] The term "social media pile" can refer to a user interface
where each social media posters is represented by a thumbnail or
other visual indicia. The social media pile can include two or more
thumbnails or visual indicia formed into an arrangement that
resembles a pile.
[0192] The preceding is a simplified summary of the disclosure to
provide an understanding of some aspects of the disclosure. This
summary is neither an extensive nor exhaustive overview of the
disclosure and its various aspects, embodiments, and/or
configurations. It is intended neither to identify key or critical
elements of the disclosure nor to delineate the scope of the
disclosure but to present selected concepts of the disclosure in a
simplified form as an introduction to the more detailed description
presented below. As will be appreciated, other aspects,
embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure are possible
utilizing, alone or in combination, one or more of the features set
forth above or described in detail below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0193] FIG. 1A includes a first view of an embodiment of an
environment of an intelligent television;
[0194] FIG. 1B includes a second view of an embodiment of an
environment of an intelligent television;
[0195] FIG. 2A includes a first view of an embodiment of an
intelligent television;
[0196] FIG. 2B includes a second view of an embodiment of an
intelligent television;
[0197] FIG. 2C includes a third view of an embodiment of an
intelligent television;
[0198] FIG. 2D includes a fourth view of an embodiment of an
intelligent television;
[0199] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the hardware
of an intelligent television;
[0200] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the
intelligent television software and/or firmware;
[0201] FIG. 5 is a second block diagram of an embodiment of the
intelligent television software and/or firmware;
[0202] FIG. 6 is a third block diagram of an embodiment of the
intelligent television software and/or firmware;
[0203] FIG. 7 is a plan view of an embodiment of a handheld remote
control;
[0204] FIG. 8 is a side view of an embodiment of a remote
control;
[0205] FIG. 9A is a bottom view of an embodiment of a remote
control with a joystick in a neutral position;
[0206] FIG. 9B is a bottom view of an embodiment of a remote
control with the joystick in a lower position;
[0207] FIG. 9C is a bottom view of an embodiment of a remote
control with the joystick in an upper position;
[0208] FIG. 10 is a plan view of another embodiment of a handheld
remote control;
[0209] FIG. 11A is a front view of an embodiment of an Intelligent
TV screen;
[0210] FIG. 11B is a front view of an embodiment of an Intelligent
TV screen;
[0211] FIG. 11C is a front view of an embodiment of an Intelligent
TV screen;
[0212] FIG. 12 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a handheld
remote control of either FIG. 7 or 10;
[0213] FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a content
data service;
[0214] FIG. 14A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0215] FIG. 14B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0216] FIG. 14C is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0217] FIG. 14D is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0218] FIG. 14E is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0219] FIG. 14F is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0220] FIG. 14G is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0221] FIG. 14H is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0222] FIG. 15A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0223] FIG. 15B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0224] FIG. 15C is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0225] FIG. 15D is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0226] FIG. 15E is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0227] FIG. 16 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a user
interface process flow from a top view to a lowest view;
[0228] FIG. 17 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0229] FIG. 18A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0230] FIG. 18B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0231] FIG. 18C is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0232] FIG. 19A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0233] FIG. 19B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0234] FIG. 19C is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0235] FIG. 20 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0236] FIG. 21 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0237] FIG. 22A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0238] FIG. 22B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0239] FIG. 22C is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0240] FIG. 23 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0241] FIG. 24 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0242] FIG. 25 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0243] FIG. 26 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0244] FIG. 27 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0245] FIG. 28 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0246] FIG. 29 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0247] FIG. 30 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0248] FIG. 31A is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method
for providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0249] FIG. 31B is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method
for providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0250] FIG. 32 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0251] FIG. 33A is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0252] FIG. 33B is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0253] FIG. 34 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV;
[0254] FIG. 35 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0255] FIG. 36 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV;
[0256] FIG. 37 is a flowchart view of an embodiment of a method for
providing a user interface in an Intelligent TV; and
[0257] FIG. 38 is a view of an embodiment of a user interface for
an Intelligent TV.
[0258] In the appended figures, similar components and/or features
may have the same reference label. Further, various components of
the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label
by a letter that distinguishes among the similar components. If
only the first reference label is used in the specification, the
description is applicable to any one of the similar components
having the same first reference label irrespective of the second
reference label.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0259] Presented herein are embodiments of a device. The device can
be a network-enabled telecommunications device, such as a
television, an electronic visual display device, or other smart
device. The device can include one or more screens, or sections of
a screen, that are configured to receive and present information
from a number of sources. Further, the device can receive user
input in unique ways. The overall design and functionality of the
device provides for an enhanced user experience making the device
more useful and more efficient.
[0260] Intelligent Television (TV) Environment:
[0261] Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, an Intelligent TV, or device,
100 is shown. It is anticipated that the Intelligent TV 100 may be
used for entertainment, business applications, social interaction,
content creation and/or consumption, and to organize and control
one or more other devices that are in communication with the
Intelligent TV 100. As can be appreciated, the Intelligent TV 100
can be used to enhance the user interactive experience whether at
home or at work.
[0262] In some embodiments, the Intelligent TV 100 may be
configured to receive and understand a variety of user and/or
device inputs. For example, a user may interface with the
Intelligent TV 100 via one or more physical or electrical controls,
such as buttons, switches, touch sensitive screens/regions (e.g.,
capacitive touch, resistive touch, etc.), and/or other controls
associated with the Intelligent TV 100. In some cases, the
Intelligent TV 100 may include the one or more interactive
controls. Additionally or alternatively, the one or more controls
may be associated with a remote control. The remote control may
communicate with the Intelligent TV 100 via wired and/or wireless
signals. As can be appreciated, the remote control may operate via
radio frequency (RF), infrared (IR), and/or a specific wireless
communications protocol (e.g., Bluetooth.TM., Wi-Fi, etc.). In some
cases, the controls, whether physical or electrical, may be
configured (e.g., programmed) to suit a user's preferences.
[0263] Additionally or alternatively, smart phones, tablets,
computers, laptops, netbooks, and other smart devices may be used
to control the Intelligent TV 100. For example, control of the
Intelligent TV 100 may be achieved via an application running on a
smart device. The application may be configured to present a user
with various Intelligent TV 100 controls in an intuitive user
interface (UI) on a screen associated with the device 100. The
screen may be a touch sensitive, or touch screen, display.
Selections input by a user via the UI may be configured to control
the Intelligent TV 100 by the application accessing one or more
communication features associated with the smart device.
[0264] It is anticipated that the Intelligent TV 100 can receive
input via various input devices including, but in no way limited
to, video, audio, radio, light, tactile, and combinations thereof.
Among other things, these input devices may be configured to allow
the Intelligent TV 100 to see, recognize, and react to user
gestures. For instance, a user may talk to the Intelligent TV 100
in a conversational manner. The Intelligent TV 100 may hear and
understand voice commands in a manner similar to a smart device's
intelligent personal assistant and voice-controlled navigator
application (e.g., Apple's Siri, Android's Skyvi, Robin, his, and
other applications).
[0265] The Intelligent TV 100 may also be a communications device
which can establish network connections 104 through many alternate
means, including wired 108 or wireless 112 means, over cellular
networks 116 to connect via cellular base antenna 142 to telephone
networks operated by telephone company 146, and by using a
telephone line 120 to connect to telephone networks operated by
telephone company 146. These connections 104 enable the Intelligent
TV 100 to access one or more communication networks 132. The
communication networks may comprise any type of known communication
medium or collection of communication media and may use any type of
protocols to transport messages or signals between endpoints. The
communication networks may include wired and/or wireless
communication technologies. The Internet is an example of a
communication network 132 that constitutes an Internet Protocol
(IP) network consisting of many computers, computing networks, and
other communication devices located all over the world, which are
connected through many telephone systems and other means.
[0266] Other examples of the communication network 132 include,
without limitation, a standard Plain Old Telephone System (POTS),
an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), the Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN), a Local Area Network (LAN), a Wide Area
Network (WAN), a cellular network, and any other type of
packet-switched or circuit-switched network known in the art. In
addition, it can be appreciated that the communication network 132
need not be limited to any one network type, and instead may be
comprised of a number of different networks and/or network
types.
[0267] In some embodiments, the Intelligent TV 100 may be equipped
with multiple communication means. The multiple communication means
may allow the Intelligent TV 100 to communicate across Local Area
Networks (LANs) 124, wireless local area networks (WLANs) 128, and
other networks 132. The networks 132 may be connected in a
redundant manner to ensure network access. In other words, if one
connection is interrupted, the Intelligent TV 100 can use an
alternate communications path to reestablish and/or maintain the
network connection 104. Among other things, the Intelligent TV 100
may use these network connections 104 to send and receive
information, interact with an electronic program guide (EPG) 136,
receive software updates 140, contact customer service 144 (e.g.,
to receive help or service, etc.), and/or access remotely stored
digital media libraries 148. In addition, these connections can
allow the Intelligent TV 100 to make phone calls, send and/or
receive email messages, send and/or receive text messages (such as
email and instant messages), surf the Internet using an internet
search engine, post blogs by a blogging service, and
connect/interact with social media sites and/or an online community
(e.g., Facebook.TM. Twitter.TM., LinkedIn.TM., Pinterest.TM.,
Google+.TM., MySpace.TM., and the like) maintained by a social
network service. In combination with other components of the
Intelligent TV 100 described in more detail below, these network
connections 104 also enable the Intelligent TV 100 to conduct video
teleconferences, electronic meetings, and other communications. The
Intelligent TV 100 may capture and store images and sound, using
associated cameras, microphones, and other sensors. Additionally or
alternatively, the Intelligent TV 100 may create and save screen
shots of media, images, and data displayed on a screen associated
with the Intelligent TV 100.
[0268] Further, as shown in FIG. 1B, the Intelligent TV 100 can
interact with other electronic devices 168 by either by the wired
108 and/or wireless 112 connections. As described herein,
components of the Intelligent TV 100 allow the device 100 to be
connected to devices 168 including, but not limited to, DVD players
168a, BluRay players 168b, portable digital media devices 168c,
smart phones 168d, tablet devices 168e, personal computers 168f,
external cable boxes 168g, keyboards 168h, pointing devices 168i,
printers 168j, game controllers and/or game pads 168k, satellite
dishes 168l, external display devices 168m, and other universal
serial bus (USB), local area network (LAN), Bluetooth.TM., or
high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) compliant devices,
and/or wireless devices. When connected to an external cable box
168g or satellite dish 168l, the Intelligent TV 100 can access
additional media content. Also, as further described below, the
Intelligent TV 100 is capable of receiving digital and/or analog
signals broadcast by TV stations. The Intelligent TV 100 can be
configured as one or more of a standard-definition television,
enhanced television, and high-definition television. It may operate
as one or more of cable, Internet, Internet Protocol, satellite,
web, and/or smart television. The Intelligent TV 100 may also be
used to control the operation of, and may interface with, other
smart components such as security systems 172, door/gate
controllers 176, remote video cameras 180, lighting systems 184,
thermostats 188, refrigerators 192, and other appliances.
[0269] Intelligent TV:
[0270] FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate components of the Intelligent TV 100.
In general, as shown by FIG. 2A, the Intelligent TV 100 can be
supported by a removable base or stand 204 that is attached to a
frame 208. The frame 208 surrounds edges of a display screen 212,
leaving a front surface of the display screen 212 uncovered. The
display screen 212 may comprise a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)
screen, a plasma screen, Light Emitting Diode (LED) screen, or
other screen types. In embodiments, the entire front surface of the
screen 212 may be touch sensitive and capable of receiving input by
the user touching the front surface of the screen 212.
[0271] The Intelligent TV 100 may include integrated speakers 216
and at least one microphone 220. A first area of the frame 208 may
comprise a horizontal gesture capture region 224 and second areas
comprise vertical gesture capture regions 228. The gesture capture
regions 224, 228 may comprise areas or regions that are capable of
receiving input by recognizing gestures made by the user, and in
some examples, without the need for the user to actually touch the
screen 212 surface of the Intelligent TV 100. However, the gesture
capture regions 224, 228 may not include pixels that can perform a
display function or capability.
[0272] One or more image capture devices 232, such as a camera, can
be included for capturing still and/or video images. The image
capture device 232 can include or be associated with additional
elements, such as a flash or other light source 236 and a range
finding device 240 to assist focusing of the image capture device.
In addition, the microphone 220, gesture capture regions 224, 228,
image capture devices 232, and the range finding device 240 may be
used by the Intelligent TV 100 to recognize individual users.
Additionally or alternatively, the Intelligent TV 100 may learn and
remember preferences associated with the individual users. In some
embodiments, the learning and remembering (i.e., identifying and
recalling stored information) may be associated with the
recognition of a user.
[0273] An IR transmitter and receiver 244 may also be provided to
connect the Intelligent TV 100 with a remote control device (not
shown) or other IR devices. Additionally or alternatively, the
remote control device may transmit wireless signals via RF, light,
and/or a means other than IR. Also shown in FIG. 2A is an audio
jack 248, which may be hidden behind a panel that is hinged or
removable. The audio jack 248 accommodates a tip, ring, sleeve
(TRS) connector, for example, to allow the user to utilize
headphones, a headset, or other external audio equipment.
[0274] The Intelligent TV 100 can also include a number of buttons
252. For example, FIG. 2A illustrates the buttons 252 on the top of
the Intelligent TV 100, although the buttons could be placed at
other locations. As shown, the Intelligent TV 100 includes six
buttons 252a-f, which can be configured for specific inputs. For
example, the first button 252a may be configured as an on/off
button used to control overall system power to the Intelligent TV
100. The buttons 252 may be configured to, in combination or alone,
control a number of aspects of the Intelligent TV 100. Some
non-limiting examples include, but are not limited to, overall
system volume, brightness, the image capture device, the
microphone, and initiation/termination of a video conference.
Instead of separate buttons, two of the buttons may be combined
into a rocker button. This rocker button arrangement may be useful
in situations where the buttons are configured to control features
such as volume or brightness. In some embodiments, one or more of
the buttons 252 are capable of supporting different user commands.
By way of example, a normal press has a duration commonly of less
than about 1 second and resembles a quick input. A medium press has
a duration commonly of 1 second or more but less than about 12
seconds. A long press has a duration commonly of about 12 seconds
or more. The function of the buttons is normally specific to the
application that is active on the Intelligent TV 100. In the video
conference application for instance and depending on the particular
button, a normal, medium, or long press can mean end the video
conference, increase or decrease the volume, increase a rate speed
associated with a response to an input, and toggle microphone mute.
Depending on the particular button, a normal, medium, or long press
can also control the image capture device 232 to increase zoom,
decrease zoom, take a photograph, or record video.
[0275] In support of communications functions or capabilities, the
Intelligent TV 100 can include one or more shared or dedicated
antennae 256 and wired broadband connections 260 as shown in FIG.
2B. The antennae 256 also enable the Intelligent TV 100 to receive
digital and/or analog broadcast TV channels. The wired broadband
connections 260 are, for example, a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL),
an optical line, an Ethernet port, an IEEE 1394 interface, or other
interfaces. The Intelligent TV 100 also has a telephone line jack
262 to further provide communications capability.
[0276] In addition to the removable base 204, the Intelligent TV
100 may include hardware and mounting points 264 on a rear surface
to facilitate mounting the Intelligent TV 100 to a surface, such as
a wall. In one example, the Intelligent TV 100 may incorporate at
least one Video Equipment Standards Association (VESA) mounting
interface for attaching the device 100 to the surface.
[0277] As shown in FIG. 2C, the Intelligent TV 100 may include
docking interfaces or ports 268. The docking ports 268 may include
proprietary or universal ports to support the interconnection of
the Intelligent TV 100 to other devices or components, which may or
may not include additional or different capabilities from those
integral to the Intelligent TV 100. In addition to supporting an
exchange of communication signals between the Intelligent TV 100
and a connected device or component, the docking ports 268 can
support the supply of power to the connected device or component.
The docking ports 268 can also comprise an intelligent element that
comprises a docking module for controlling communications or other
interactions between the Intelligent TV 100 and the connected
device or component.
[0278] The Intelligent TV 100 also includes a number of card slots
272 and network or peripheral interface ports 276. The card slots
272 may accommodate different types of cards including subscriber
identity modules (SIM), secure digital (SD) cards, MiniSD cards,
flash memory cards, and other cards. Ports 276 in embodiments may
include input/output (I/O) ports, such as universal serial bus
(USB) ports, parallel ports, game ports, and high-definition
multimedia interface (HDMI) connectors.
[0279] An audio/video (A/V) I/O module 280 can be included to
provide audio to an interconnected speaker or other device, and to
receive audio input from a connected microphone or other device. As
an example, the audio input/output interface 280 may comprise an
associated amplifier and analog-to-digital converter.
[0280] Hardware Features:
[0281] FIG. 3 illustrates components of a Intelligent TV 100 in
accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. In general,
the Intelligent TV 100 includes a primary screen 304. Screen 304
can be a touch sensitive screen and can include different operative
areas.
[0282] For example, a first operative area, within the screen 304,
may comprise a display 310. In some embodiments, the display 310
may be touch sensitive. In general, the display 310 may comprise a
full color, display.
[0283] A second area within the screen 304 may comprise a gesture
capture region 320. The gesture capture region 320 may comprise an
area or region that is outside of the display 310 area, and that is
capable of receiving input, for example in the form of gestures
provided by a user. However, the gesture capture region 320 does
not include pixels that can perform a display function or
capability.
[0284] A third region of the screen 304 may comprise a configurable
area 312. The configurable area 312 is capable of receiving input
and has display or limited display capabilities. In embodiments,
the configurable area 312 may present different input options to
the user. For example, the configurable area 312 may display
buttons or other relatable items. Moreover, the identity of
displayed buttons, or whether any buttons are displayed at all
within the configurable area 312 of a screen 304, may be determined
from the context in which the Intelligent TV 100 is used and/or
operated.
[0285] In an exemplary touch sensitive screen 304 embodiment, the
touch sensitive screen 304 comprises a liquid crystal display
extending across at least those regions of the touch sensitive
screen 304 that are capable of providing visual output to a user,
and a capacitive input matrix over those regions of the touch
sensitive screen 304 that are capable of receiving input from the
user.
[0286] One or more display controllers 316 may be provided for
controlling the operation of the screen 304. The display controller
316 may control the operation of the touch sensitive screen 304,
including input (touch sensing) and output (display) functions. The
display controller 316 may also control the operation of the screen
304 and may interface with other inputs, such as infrared and/or
radio input signals (e.g., door/gate controllers, alarm system
components, etc.). In accordance with still other embodiments, the
functions of a display controller 316 may be incorporated into
other components, such as a processor 364.
[0287] The processor 364 may comprise a general purpose
programmable processor or controller for executing application
programming or instructions. In accordance with at least some
embodiments, the processor 364 may include multiple processor
cores, and/or implement multiple virtual processors. In accordance
with still other embodiments, the processor 364 may include
multiple physical processors. As a particular example, the
processor 364 may comprise a specially configured application
specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other integrated circuit, a
digital signal processor, a controller, a hardwired electronic or
logic circuit, a programmable logic device or gate array, a special
purpose computer, or the like. The processor 364 generally
functions to run programming code or instructions implementing
various functions of the Intelligent TV 100.
[0288] In support of connectivity functions or capabilities, the
Intelligent TV 100 can include a module for encoding/decoding
and/or compression/decompression 366 for receiving and managing
digital television information. Encoding/decoding
compression/decompression module 366 enables decompression and/or
decoding of analog and/or digital information dispatched by a
public television chain or in a private television network and
received across antenna 324, I/O module 348, wireless connectivity
module 328, and/or other wireless communications module 332. The
television information may be sent to screen 304 and/or attached
speakers receiving analog or digital reception signals. Any
encoding/decoding and compression/decompression is performable on
the basis of various formats (e.g., audio, video, and data).
Encrypting module 368 is in communication with encoding/decoding
compression/decompression module 366 and enables the
confidentiality of all the data received or transmitted by the user
or supplier.
[0289] In support of communications functions or capabilities, the
Intelligent TV 100 can include a wireless connectivity module 328.
As examples, the wireless connectivity module 328 can comprise a
GSM, CDMA, FDMA and/or analog cellular telephony transceiver
capable of supporting voice, multimedia and/or data transfers over
a cellular network. Alternatively or in addition, the Intelligent
TV 100 can include an additional or other wireless communications
module 332. As examples, the other wireless communications module
332 can comprise a Wi-Fi, Blutooth.TM., WiMax, infrared, or other
wireless communications link. The wireless connectivity module 328
and the other wireless communications module 332 can each be
associated with a shared or a dedicated antenna 324 and a shared or
dedicated I/O module 348.
[0290] An input/output module 348 and associated ports may be
included to support communications over wired networks or links,
for example with other communication devices, server devices,
and/or peripheral devices. Examples of an input/output module 348
include an Ethernet port, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port,
Thunderbolt.TM. or Light Peak interface, Institute of Electrical
and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 1394 port, or other interface.
[0291] An audio input/output interface/device(s) 344 can be
included to provide analog audio to an interconnected speaker or
other device, and to receive analog audio input from a connected
microphone or other device. As an example, the audio input/output
interface/device(s) 344 may comprise an associated amplifier and
analog-to-digital converter. Alternatively or in addition, the
Intelligent TV 100 can include an integrated audio input/output
device 356 and/or an audio jack for interconnecting an external
speaker or microphone. For example, an integrated speaker and an
integrated microphone can be provided, to support near talk or
speaker phone operations.
[0292] A port interface 352 may be included. The port interface 352
may include proprietary or universal ports to support the
interconnection of the device 100 to other devices or components,
such as a dock, which may or may not include additional or
different capabilities from those integral to the device 100. In
addition to supporting an exchange of communication signals between
the device 100 and another device or component, the docking port
136 and/or port interface 352 can support the supply of power to or
from the device 100. The port interface 352 also comprises an
intelligent element that comprises a docking module for controlling
communications or other interactions between the Intelligent TV 100
and a connected device or component. The docking module may
interface with software applications that allow for the remote
control of other devices or components (e.g., media centers, media
players, and computer systems).
[0293] An Intelligent TV 100 may also include memory 308 for use in
connection with the execution of application programming or
instructions by the processor 364, and for the temporary or long
term storage of program instructions and/or data. As examples, the
memory 308 may comprise RAM, DRAM, SDRAM, or other solid state
memory. Alternatively or in addition, data storage 314 may be
provided. Like the memory 308, the data storage 314 may comprise a
solid state memory device or devices. Alternatively or in addition,
the data storage 314 may comprise a hard disk drive or other random
access memory.
[0294] Hardware buttons 358 can be included for example for use in
connection with certain control operations. One or more image
capture interfaces/devices 340, such as a camera, can be included
for capturing still and/or video images. Alternatively or in
addition, an image capture interface/device 340 can include a
scanner, code reader, or motion sensor. An image capture
interface/device 340 can include or be associated with additional
elements, such as a flash or other light source. The image capture
interfaces/devices 340 may interface with a user ID module 350 that
assists in identifying users of the Intelligent TV 100.
[0295] The Intelligent TV 100 can also include a global positioning
system (GPS) receiver 336. In accordance with embodiments of the
present invention, the GPS receiver 336 may further comprise a GPS
module that is capable of providing absolute location information
to other components of the Intelligent TV 100. As will be
appreciated, other satellite-positioning system receivers can be
used in lieu of or in addition to GPS.
[0296] Power can be supplied to the components of the Intelligent
TV 100 from a power source and/or power control module 360. The
power control module 360 can, for example, include a battery, an
AC-to-DC converter, power control logic, and/or ports for
interconnecting the Intelligent TV 100 to an external source of
power.
[0297] Communication between components of the Intelligent TV 100
is provided by bus 322. Bus 322 may comprise one or more physical
buses for control, addressing, and/or data transmission. Bus 322
may be parallel, serial, a hybrid thereof, or other technology.
[0298] Firmware and Software:
[0299] An embodiment of the software system components and modules
400 is shown in FIG. 4. The software system 400 may comprise one or
more layers including, but not limited to, an operating system
kernel 404, one or more libraries 408, an application framework
412, and one or more applications 416. The one or more layers
404-416 can communicate with each other to perform functions for
the Intelligent TV 100.
[0300] An operating system (OS) kernel 404 contains the primary
functions that allow the software to interact with hardware
associated with the Intelligent TV 100. Kernel 404 can include a
collection of software that manages the computer hardware resources
and provides services for other computer programs or software code.
The operating system kernel 404 is the main component of the
operating system and acts as an intermediary between the
applications and data processing done with the hardware components.
Part of the operating system kernel 404 can include one or more
device drivers 420. A device driver 420 can be any code within the
operating system that helps operate or control a device or hardware
attached to or associated with the Intelligent TV. The driver 420
can include code for operating video, audio, and/or other
multimedia components of the Intelligent TV 100. Examples of
drivers include display, camera, flash, binder (IPC), keypad, WiFi,
and audio drivers.
[0301] Library 408 can contain code or other components that may be
accessed and implemented during the operation of the software
system 400. The library 408 may contain one or more of, but is not
limited to, an operating system runtime library 424, a TV services
hardware abstraction layer (HAL) library 428, and/or a data service
library 432. The OS runtime library 424 may contain the code
required by the operating system kernel 404 or other operating
system functions to be executed during the runtime of the software
system 400. The library can include the code that is initiated
during the running of the software system 400.
[0302] The TV services hardware abstraction layer library 428 can
include code required by TV services either executed in the
application framework 412 or an application 416. The TV services
HAL library 428 is specific to the Intelligent TV 100 operations
that control different functions of the Intelligent TV. The TV
service HAL library 428 can also be formed from other types of
application languages or embodiments of different types of code or
formats for code beyond the hardware abstraction layer.
[0303] The data services library 432 can include the one or more
components or codes to implement components for the data services
function. The data services function can be implemented in the
application framework 412 and/or applications layer 416. An
embodiment of a function of the data services and the type of
components that may be included is shown in FIG. 6.
[0304] The application framework 412 can include a general
abstraction for providing functionality that can be selected by one
or more applications 416 to provide specific application functions
or software for those applications. Thus, the framework 412 can
include one or more different services, or other applications, that
can be accessed by the applications 416 to provide general
functions across two or more applications. Such functions include,
for example, management of one or more of windows or panels,
surfaces, activities, content, and resources, The application
framework 412 can include one or more, but is not limited to, TV
services 434, TV services framework 440, TV resources 444, and user
interface components 448.
[0305] The TV services framework 440 can provide an additional
abstraction for different TV services. TV services framework 440
allows for the general access and function of services that are
associated with the TV functionality. The TV services 436 are
general services provided within the TV services framework 440 that
can be accessed by applications in the applications layer 416. The
TV resources 444 provide code for accessing TV resources 444
including any type of storage, video, audio, or other functionality
provided with the Intelligent TV 100. The TV resources 444, TV
services 436, and TV services framework 440 provide for the
different implementations of TV functionality that may occur with
the Intelligent TV 100.
[0306] One or more user interface components 448 can provide
general components for display of the Intelligent TV 100. The user
interface components 448 might be general components that may be
accessed by different applications provided in the application
framework 412. The user interface components 448 may be accessed to
provide for panels and silos as described in conjunction with FIG.
5.
[0307] The applications layer 416 can both contain and execute
applications associated with the Intelligent TV 100. Applications
layer 416 may include one or more of, but is not limited to, a live
TV application 452, a video on demand application 456, a media
center application 460, an application center application 464, and
a user interface application 468. The live TV application 452 can
provide live TV over different signal sources. For example, the
live TV application 452 can provide TV from input from cable
television, over air broadcasts, from satellite services, or other
types of live TV services. Live TV application 452 may then present
the multimedia presentation or video and audio presentation of the
live television signal over the display of the Intelligent TV
100.
[0308] The video on demand application 456 can provide for video
from different storage sources. Unlike Live TV application 452,
video on demand 456 provides for display of videos that are
accessed from some memory source. The sources of the video on
demand can be associated with users or with the Intelligent TV or
some other type of service. For example, the video on demand 456
may be provided from an iTunes library stored in a cloud, from a
local disc storage that contains stored video programs, or from
some other source.
[0309] The media center application 460 can provide applications
for different types of media presentation. For example, the media
center 460 can provide for displaying pictures or audio that is
different from, but still accessible by the user and different from
live TV or video on demand. The media center 460 allows for the
access of different sources to obtain the media in the display of
such media on the Intelligent TV 100.
[0310] The application center 464 allows for the provision, storage
and use of applications. An application can be a game, a
productivity application, or some other application generally
associated with computer systems or other devices, but may be
operated within the Intelligent TV. An application center 464 may
obtain these applications from different sources, store them
locally and then execute those types of applications for the user
on the Intelligent TV 100.
[0311] User interface application 468 provides for the specific
user interfaces associated with the Intelligent TV 100. These user
interfaces can include the silos and panels that are described in
FIG. 5. An embodiment of the user interface software 500 is shown
in FIG. 5. Here the application framework 412 contains one or more
code components which help control the user interface events while
one or more applications in the applications layer 416 affects the
user interface use for the Intelligent TV 100. The application
framework 412 can include a silo transition controller 504 and/or
an input event dispatcher 508. There may be more or fewer code
components in the application framework 412 than those shown in
FIG. 5. The silo transition controller 504 contains the code and
language that manages the transitions between one or more silos. A
silo can be a vertical user interface feature on the Intelligent TV
that contains information for user. The transition controller 504
can manage the changes between two silos when an event occurs in
the user interface. The input event dispatcher 508 can receive user
interface events that may be received from the operating system and
provided to the input event dispatcher 508. These events can
include selections of buttons on a remote control or on the TV or
other types of user interface inputs. The input event dispatcher
508 may then send these events to a silo manager 532 or panel
manager 536 depending on the type of the event. The silo transition
controller 504 can interface with the silo manager 532 to affect
changes in the silos.
[0312] The applications layer 416 can include a user interface
application 468 and/or a silo application 512. The applications
layer 416 can include more or fewer user interface applications as
necessary to control the user interface of the Intelligent TV 100
than those shown in FIG. 5. The user interface application 468 can
include a silo manager 532, a panel manager 536, and one or more
types of panels 516-528. The silo manager 532 manages the display
and/or features of silos. The silo manager 532 can receive or send
information from the silo transition controller 504 or the input
event dispatcher 508 to change the silos displayed and/or to
determine types of input received in the silos.
[0313] A panel manager 536 is operable to display panels in the
user interface to manage transitions between those panels or to
affect user interface inputs received in the panel. The panel
manager 536 may thus be in communication with different user
interface panels such as a global panel 516, a volume panel 520, a
settings panel 524, and/or a notification panel 528. The panel
manager 536 can display these types of panels depending on the
inputs received from the input event dispatcher 508. The global
panel 516 may include information that is associated with the home
screen or top level hierarchal information for the user. A volume
panel 520 may display information about an audio volume control or
other settings for volume. A settings panel 524 can include
information displayed about the settings of the audio or video, or
other settable characteristics of the Intelligent TV 100. A
notification panel 528 can provide information about notifications
to a user. These notifications can be associated with information,
such as, video on demand displays, favorites, currently provided
programs, or other information. Notifications can be associated
with the media or with some type of setting, or operation or the
Intelligent TV 100. The panel manager 536 may be in communication
with the panel controller 552 of the silo application 512.
[0314] The panel controller 552 may operate to control portions of
the panels of the types described previously. Thus, the panel
controller 552 may be in communication with a top panel application
540, an application panel 544, and/or bottom panel 548. These types
of panels may be differently displayed in the user interface of the
Intelligent TV 100. The panel control thus may be based on the
configuration of the system or the type of display being used
currently, put the types of panels 516-528 into a certain display
orientation governed by the top panel application 540, application
panel 544, or bottom panel application 548.
[0315] An embodiment of the data service 432 and the operation of
the data management is shown in FIG. 6. The data management 600 can
include one or more code components that are associated with
different types of data. For example, there may be code components
within the data service 432 that execute and are associated with
video on demand, the electronic program guide, or media data. There
may be more or fewer types of data service 432 components than
those shown in FIG. 6. Each of the different types of data may
include a data model 604-612. The data models govern what
information is to be stored and how that information will be stored
by the data service. Thus, the data model can govern regardless of
where the data comes from, how the data will be received or managed
within the Intelligent TV system. Thus, the data model 604, 608,
and/or 612, can provide a translation ability or affect the ability
to translate data from one form to another to be used by the
Intelligent TV 100.
[0316] The different types of data services (video on demand,
electronic programming guide, media) each have a data subservice
620, 624, and/or 628 that is in communication with one or more
internal and/or external content providers 616. The data
subservices 620, 624, and 628 that communicate with the content
providers 616 to obtain data that may then be stored in databases
632, 636, and 640. The subservices 620, 624, and 628 may
communicate with and initiate or enable one or more source plug-ins
644, 648, and 652 to communicate with the content provider. For
each content provider 616, there may be a different source plug-in
644, 648, and 652. Thus, if there is more than one source of
content for the data, each of the data subservices 620, 624, and
628 may determine and then enable or initiate a different source
plug-in 644, 648, and/or 652. The content providers 616 may also
provide information to a resource arbitrator 656 and/or thumbnail
cache manager 660. The resource arbitrator 656 may operate to
communicate with resources 664 that are external to the data
service 432. Thus, the resource arbitrator 656 may communicate with
cloud based storage, network based storage, or other types of
external storage in the resources 664. This information may then be
provided through the content provider module 616 to the data
subservices 620, 624, 628. Likewise, a thumbnail cache manager 660
may obtain thumbnail information from one of the data subservices
620, 624, 628 and store that information in the thumbnails database
668. Further, the thumbnail cache manager 660 may extract or
retrieve that information from the thumbnails database 668 to
provide to one of the data subservices 620, 624, 628.
[0317] An exemplary content aggregation architecture 1300 is shown
in FIG. 13. The architecture can include a user interface layer
1304 and a content aggregation layer 1308. The user interface layer
1304 may include a TV application 1312, media player 1316, and
application(s) 1320. The TV application 1312 enables the viewer to
view channels received via an appropriate transmission medium, such
as cable, satellite, and/or the Internet. The media player 1316
views other types of media received via an appropriate transmission
medium, such as the Internet. The application(s) 1320 include other
TV-related (pre-installed) applications, such as content viewing,
content searching, device viewing, and setup algorithms, and
coordinates with the media player 1316 to provide information to
the viewer.
[0318] The content source layer 1308 includes, as data services, a
content source service 1328, a content aggregation service 1332 and
a content presentation service 1336. The content source service
1328 can manage content source investigators, including local
and/or network file system(s), digital network device manager
(which discovers handheld and non-handheld devices (e.g., digital
media servers, players, renderers, controllers, printers,
uploaders, downloaders, network connectivity functions, and
interoperability units) by known techniques, such as a multicast
universal plug and play or UPnP discovery techniques, and, for each
discovered device, retrieves, parses, and encodes device
descriptors, notifies the content source service of the newly
discovered device, and provides information, such as an index, on
previously discovered devices), Internet Protocol Television or
IPTV, digital television or DTV (including high definition and
enhanced TV), third party services (such as those referenced
above), and applications (such as Android applications).
[0319] Content source investigators can track content sources and
are typically configured as binaries. The content source service
1328 starts content source investigators and maintains open and
persistent channels for communications. The communications include
query or command and response pairs. The content aggregation
service 1332 can manage content metadata fetchers, such as for
video, audio, and/or picture metadata. The content presentation
service 1336 may provide interfaces to the content index 1340, such
as an Android application interface and digital device
interfaces.
[0320] The content source service 1328 can send and receive
communications 1344 to and from the content aggregation service
1332. The communications can include notifications regarding new
and removed digital devices and/or content and search queries and
results. The content aggregation service 1332 can send and receive
communications 1348 to and from the content presentation service
1336 including device and/or content lookup notifications,
content-of-interest advisories and notifications, and search
queries and results.
[0321] When a search is performed, particularly when the user is
searching or browsing content, a user request may be received from
the user interface layer 1300, by the content presentation service
1336, which responsively opens a socket and sends the request to
the content aggregation service 1332. The content aggregation
service 1332 first returns results from the local database 1340.
The local database 1340 includes an index or data model and indexed
metadata. The content source service 1328 further issues search and
browse requests for all content source investigators and other data
management systems. The results are forwarded to the content
aggregation service 1332, which updates the database 1340 to
reflect the further search results and provides the original
content aggregation database search results and the data updates,
reflecting the additional content source service search results,
over the previously opened socket to the content presentation
service 1336. The content presentation service 1336 then provides
the results to one or more components in the user interface layer
1300 for presentation to the viewer. When the search session is
over (e.g., the search session is terminated by the user or by an
action associated with user), the user interface layer 1300
disconnects the socket. As shown, media can be provided directly by
the content aggregation service 1332 to the media player 1316 for
presentation to the user.
[0322] Remote Control:
[0323] A handheld remote control can be provided to enable user
interaction with the Intelligent TV 100. An exemplary handheld
remote control is shown in FIGS. 7-9. The remote control 700 can
include one or more of, but is not limited to, top, side and bottom
housings 704, 708, and 712, an (on/off) power button 716, an input
source button 720 (to select input source such as Live TV, video on
demand, media center, application center, high definition
multimedia interface or HDMI, component or COMP, audio/Video or
A/V, digital or analog television or DTV/ATV, and video graphics
array (VGA)), a (volume) mute button 724, a Live TV button 728 (to
activate or select the Live TV silo), a video on demand (VOD)
button 732 (to activate or select the video on demand silo), a
media center button 736 (to activate or select the media center
application or silo, which access various types of media such as
music, TV programming, videos, and the like), an application center
button 740 (to activate or select the application center
application or silo), a global panel button 744, an application
panel button 748, a back button 752 (to select a prior user
operation or Intelligent TV state and/or navigate up a hierarchy of
any displayed image or object(s) (in which case the back button 752
does not navigate within application panels or across application
silos), a play button 756 (to play or pause media), a D-pad 760
(which includes north, east, west, and south directional arrows to
navigate among displayed images and/or move between levels of an
application's or object's hierarchy such as application view
navigation, panel navigation, and collection navigation), an OK (or
select) button 764 (to select a highlighted displayed image (such
as displayed speed control, rewind, forward, play, and pause
objects and/or objects on menu bar or in a menu box) and/or
navigate down a hierarchy of any displayed image or object(s)), a
rocker-type volume-up and volume-down button 768 (to adjust the
volume), a menu/guide button 772 (to select for display a menu or
guide of programming), a 0-9 (number) button 776 (to display a
number pad on the TV screen), a settings button 780 (which launches
an application to access current and change TV settings (such as
channel settings and settings used to adjust picture and sound
effects (e.g., image mode (e.g., standard, playground, game,
cinema, concert, and studio), brightness, contrast, saturation,
color temperature, energy savings, 3D noise reduction, hue,
sharpness, zoom mode (e.g., full screen, standard, smart zoom, and
dot-to-dot), picture position, 3D mode, for picture, and sound
retrieval system or SRS TruSurround, sound mode (e.g., standard,
live 1, live 2, theatre, music, speech, user equalizer mode,
Left/Right speaker balance, auto volume control, Sony/Philips
Interconnect Format or S/PDIF (off, auto, pulse code modulation or
PCM) for sound) and system settings (such as system (e.g., selected
language for graphical user interface, user geographical and/or
geopolitical location information, input method, area settings, and
sleep time), network (e.g., WiFi, WiFi hotspot, WiFi direct,
Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet or PPPoE (asymmetric digital
subscriber line or ADSL), Ethernet) settings (e.g., enabled and
disabled and selected and non-selected) and information (e.g.,
network information (e.g., electronic address such as Internet
Protocol or IP address, subnet mask, gateway, domain name server
information, domain name, Media Access Control or MAC address,
service set identification or SSID, security information, and
password information) and inline status), manage applications
(e.g., currently installed applications, currently executing
applications, and internal and external computer readable medium
usage), and view user information regarding the Intelligent TV
100)), a rocker-type channel-up and channel-down button 784 (to
increment or decrement the selected channel), and first, second,
third and fourth hotkeys 788, 792, 794, and 796, and/or a moveable
joystick 900 on a bottom of the remote control 700. The first,
second, third, and fourth hotkeys are generally assigned different
colors, which color indexing is depicted as visual indicia on a
selected panel to show the currently assigned function, if any, for
each hotkey. As can be seen, the actuator layout can provide a
highly efficient, satisfactory, and easily usable experience to the
end user.
[0324] Unlike the functional associations and functions of many of
the actuators, those of some of the actuators are not readily
apparent. A number of examples will now be discussed by way of
illustration.
[0325] The media center button 736, when selected, can provide
information regarding music, videos, photographs, collections or
groupings of music, videos, and/or photographs, and internal and
external computational devices (such as personal computers,
laptops, tablet computers, wireless phones, removable computer
readable media, and the like), which can be grouped in a selected
manner (such as favorites, most recently viewed, most watched or
viewed, and most recently added). The information can includes
previews (which can include selected portions of the media content,
duration, file size, date created, date last watched, times watched
or viewed, and audio and/or video format information).
[0326] The application center button 740, when selected, may
provide information regarding pre-installed and downloaded
applications. Unlike downloaded applications, pre-installed
applications cannot be removed by the user or manually updated.
Exemplary pre-installed applications include web browser, settings
control, and content search algorithms. By way of illustration, the
application center button 740 can provide a scrollable graphical
grid of icons (each icon being associated with an application)
currently available in the application center.
[0327] The global panel button 744, when selected, can provide the
user, via one or more panels or windows, with access to one or more
of, but not limited to, silos, notifications, a web browser, system
settings, and/or information associated therewith. For example, the
global panel button 744 can enable the user to determine what
external devices are currently connected to and/or disconnected
from the Intelligent TV 100, determine what inputs (e.g., HDMI
ports) are currently available for connecting to external devices,
determine a connection and/or operational status of a selected
external device and/or network (e.g., WiFi connected, Ethernet
connected, and offline), assign a custom (or user selected) name to
each input source, determine what content is currently being
offered on Live TV, on demand, the media center, and/or the
application center, access vendor messages and notifications to the
user (e.g., system and/or application updates are available),
activate the Internet browser, and/or access shortcuts on a
displayed shortcut bar to more frequently used and desired
applications. Common shortcuts are Internet browser (e.g., Internet
search engine), system settings, and notifications. The common
types of panels are for information (which is typically information
related to a currently displayed image and/or content (e.g., title,
date/time, audio/visual indicator, rating, and genre), browse
requests, and/or search requests (such as search term field)). Each
of the panel types may include a panel navigation bar, detailed
information or relevant content to the panel function, operation
and/or purpose, and a hotkey bar (defining currently enabled
functional associations of hotkeys).
[0328] The application panel button 748, when selected, can display
an application window or panel. One application panel may be an
information panel regarding a selected (pre-installed or previously
downloaded) application icon. The information panel can one or more
of identify the selected application, provide a description of the
functionality (including application developer and/or vendor,
version, release, and/or last update date and a category or type of
application based on the application's functionality) and user
ratings and/or degree of other user downloading of the application
(e.g., a star rating assigned based on one or more of the foregoing
inputs), provide the option to launch, remove, update, and add to
favorites the identified application, and provide a listing of
selectable links of other (not yet downloaded) recommended
applications that provide similar functionality to the identified
application. The latter listing can, in turn, provide a description
of the functionality (including application developer and/or
vendor, version, release, and/or last update date and a category or
type of application based on the application's functionality) and
user ratings and/or degree of other user downloading of the
application (e.g., a star rating assigned based on one or more of
the foregoing inputs).
[0329] The functions of the first, second, third, and fourth
hotkeys 788, 792, 794, and 796 can change depending on system
state, context, and/or, within a selected screen and/or panel,
based on a content or currently selected portion of (or relative
cursor position on) the screen. Commonly, a currently assigned
function of any of the first, second, third, and fourth hotkeys
788, 792, 794, and 796 depends on a currently accessed silo and/or
panel (with which the user is currently interacting within the
silo). In other words, a first function of one of the first,
second, third, and fourth hotkeys 788, 792, 794, and 796 is
activated by the respective hotkey in a first system state while a
different second function is activated by the respective hotkey in
a different second system state. In another example, a third
function of one of the first, second, third, and fourth hotkeys
788, 792, 794, and 796 is activated by the respective hotkey when a
user focus (or currently selected cursor position or screen
portion) is at a first screen position while a different fourth
function is activated by the respective hotkey when a user focus
(or currently selected cursor position or screen portion) is at a
different second screen position. The first screen position can,
for instance, be within an icon while the second screen position is
outside of the icon. Hotkey functionality that could be enabled
when in the first screen position may be "configure" and "remove"
and disabled is "add", and, when in the second position hotkey
functionality enabled can be "add" and disabled is "configure" and
"remove". Generally, the states of hotkeys can include normal (for
enabled actions or functions), disabled (when an action or function
is temporarily disabled), pressed (when selected by a user to
command an action or function to be performed), and unavailable
(when no association between the hotkey and an action or function
is currently available). While examples of hotkey functions are
discussed below, it is to be understood that these are not intended
to be exhaustive or limiting examples.
[0330] The first hotkey 788, when selected in a first system state,
can enable the user to assign, change, or edit a name of an input
source. It is typically enabled only when the input source of HDMI,
Comp/YPbPr (e.g., component video cables), video output, and VGA is
in focus. When selected in a second system state, the first hotkey
788 can return the user to a top of a scrollable collection of
objects, such as application icons.
[0331] The second hotkey 792 may show all or less. In other words,
the hotkey 792 can allow the user to show all inputs, including the
unconnected/undetected ones and to hide the unconnected/undetected
inputs, e.g., to expand and collapse the silo/input list. Each
input source can have one of two states, namely connected/detected
and unconnected/undetected. Some input sources, including Live TV,
video on demand, media center, and application center are always
connected/detected.
[0332] The moveable joystick 900 on the bottom of the remote
control 700, when manipulated, can cause a displayed image on the
Intelligent TV 100 screen to be displaced a proportional amount. In
other words, the displayed image is displaced substantially
simultaneously with displacement of the joystick 900 within the
joystick aperture 904 in the bottom housing 712 of the remote
control. As shown in FIGS. 9B-C, the joystick 900 moves or slides
between forward and reverse positions. Releasing the joystick 900
causes the joystick 900 to return to the center position of FIG.
9A, and the window to move or slide upwardly (when the joystick is
released from the joystick position of FIG. 9B) or downwardly (when
the joystick is released from the joystick position of FIG. 9C)
until it disappears from view as shown in FIG. 11A. The effect on
the screen of the Intelligent TV 100 is shown in FIGS. 11A-C. In
FIG. 11A, video content, such as TV programming, a video, movie,
and the like, is being displayed by front surface of the screen
212. In FIG. 11B, the joystick 900 is moved or slid to the upper
position of FIG. 9B, and a drop down window or panel 1100 moves or
slides down (at the substantially the same rate of joystick 900
movement) at the top of the screen 212. In FIG. 11C, the joystick
900 is moved or slid to the lower position of FIG. 9C, and a drop
up window or panel 1100 moves or slides up (at the substantially
the same rate of joystick 900 movement) at the bottom of the screen
212. The window 1100 partially covers the video content appearing
on the remainder of the screen 212 and/or causes a portion of the
screen 212 displaying video content to move and/or compress up or
down the height of the window 1100.
[0333] The window 1100 can include one or more of information
(which is typically information related to a currently displayed
image and/or content (e.g., panel navigation bar, detailed
information (e.g., title, date/time, audio/visual indicator,
rating, and genre), and hotkey bar (defining current functional
associations of hotkeys)), browse requests, and/or search requests.
Commonly, the window 1100 includes suitable information about the
content (such as name, duration, and/or remaining viewing duration
of content), settings information, TV or system control
information, application (activation) icons (such as for
pre-installed and/or downloaded applications such as application
center, media center and Web browser), and/or information about
input source(s), When the joystick 900 is in either the forward or
reverse position, the user can select an actuator on the front of
the remote control, such as the OK button 764, and be taken, by
displayed images on the screen 212, to another location in the user
interface, such as a desktop. This process can be done in a
nonintrusive manner and without affecting the flow of content that
is pushed up or down. The joystick 900 could be moved, additionally
or differently, from side-to-side to cause the window to appear at
the left or right edge of the screen 212.
[0334] An alternative actuator configuration is shown in FIG. 10.
The actuators are substantially the same as those of FIGS. 7-9
except that the social network button 1000, when selected, can
automatically select content and publish, via a social network
service or other social media, the content to a social network or
online community. User or viewer comments and/or other messages can
be included in the outbound message. For example, all or one or
frames or portions of media content (such as a video, music, a
photograph, a picture, or text) can be provided automatically to a
predetermined or selected group of people via Linked-In.TM.,
Myspace.TM., Twitter.TM., YouTube.TM., DailyMotion.TM.,
Facebook.TM., Google+.TM.) or Second Life.TM.. The user, upon
activating the button 1000 could, in response, select a social
forum or media upon which the selected content (which is the
content displayed to the user when the social network button 1000
is activated) is to be posted and/or a predetermined group within
that social media to which the content is to be posted.
Alternatively, these selections could be preconfigured or
preselected by the user.
[0335] The social network button can also be used to "turn up" or
"turn down" a social volume visualization. The Intelligent TV 100
can create dynamically a visualization of aggregated connections
(and inbound and/or outbound messages) from a variety of social
networks. The aggregation (and inbound and outbound messages) can
be depicted graphically on the screen as a volume of connections to
influence the viewer user. With a social volume visualization,
selected contents of each linked social network profile of a social
contact (and inbound and/or outbound messages from or to the linked
social network contact and/or current activity of the social
contact (such as watching the same programming or content the
viewer is currently watching) can be presented in a separate tile
(or visually displayed object). The size of the tile can be related
to any number of criteria, including a relationship of the linked
social contact (e.g., a relative degree of importance or type of
relationship can determine the relative size of the tile, a degree
of influence of the linked social contact to the current viewer, a
geographic proximity of the linked social contact to the current
viewer, a degree to which the currently provided media content is
of interest to both the viewer and linked social contact (e.g.,
both parties enjoy war movies, murder mysteries, musicals,
comedies, and the like), an assigned ranking of the linked viewer
by the viewer, a type of social network type linking the viewer
with the linked social contact, a current activity of the social
network contact (e.g., currently watching the same content that the
viewer is currently watching), a current online or offline status
of the linked social contact, and a social network grouping type or
category to which both the viewer and linked social contact belong
(e.g., work contact, best friend, family member, etc.).
[0336] The viewer can designate a portion of the screen to depict
the social network aggregation. By turning the social volume up (+)
or down (-), the viewer can increase the size and/or numbers of
linked contact tiles provided to the viewer. In other words, by
increasing the social volume the viewer can view, access, and/or
push more social content from those of his or her social networks
associated with him or her in a memory of the Intelligent TV. By
decreasing the social volume, the viewer can view, access, and/or
push less social content from his or her associated social
networks. By selecting the mute button 724, the viewer can stop or
pause any interactivity with his or her associated social networks
(e.g., inbound or outbound messages). Social volume and/or mute can
be separated into two (or more) volume settings for outbound and
inbound social network activity. By way of illustration, a first
volume setting, control, and/or button can control the volume for
outbound social network activity (e.g., outbound social messages)
while a second (different) volume setting, control, and/or button
can control the volume for inbound social network activity (e.g.,
inbound social messages). By way of further illustration, a first
mute setting, control, and/or button can stop or pause outbound
social network activity (e.g., outbound social messages) while a
second (different) mute setting, control, and/or button can stop or
pause inbound social network activity (e.g., inbound social
messages).
[0337] A functional block diagram of the remote control is shown in
FIG. 12. The remote control 700 includes a controller 1208 to
control and supervise remote control operations, optional wireless
(RF) transceiver 1224 and antenna 1244 to send and receive wireless
signals to and from the Intelligent TV 100 and other external
components, optional infrared emitter 1228 to emit infrared signals
to the Intelligent TV 100, optional light emitting diode or LED
driver 1232 to control LED operation to provide video-enabled
feedback to the user, actuators 1220 (including the various buttons
and other actuators discussed above in connection with FIGS. 7 and
10), and joystick 900, all interconnected via a bus 1248. An on
board power source 1200 and power management module 1204 provide
power to each of these components via power circuitry 1240. The
infrared emitter 1228 and receiver (not shown) on the Intelligent
TV system 100 can be used to determine a displayed object
illuminated by the infrared signal and therefore adjust the
displayed image, for example to indicate a focus of the user (e.g.,
illuminate a displayed object or show cursor position relative to
displayed objects on the screen) and to determine and activate a
desired command of the user. This can be done by tracking a
position of the remote control in relation to infrared tracking
reference points (e.g., a sensor bar or infrared LED's) positioned
on or adjacent to the screen of the Intelligent TV 100. Motion
tracking can further be augmented using position information
received from a multi-axis gyroscope and/or accelerometer on board
the remote control (not shown).
[0338] A series of television screen shots are depicted in FIGS.
14A through 14H. These screen shots depict a navigation through
different menus or user interfaces related to the selection of
content for a movie center or media center application. A first
screen shot 1400 depicts a top menu for selecting a movie after
selecting a movies category 1404. User interface 1400 can include
several thumbnail depictions of movies that may be selectable to
view, 1408a through 1408f. Another selectable icon 1412 may be
selected to view movies or selections of movies based on different
categories. If the icon 1412 is selected, a new user interface 1416
is provided as shown in FIG. 14B.
[0339] In new user interface 1416, the movie selections are
organized by high level categories 1420. Furthermore, thumbnails
1424A and 1424B, etc., are also provided that may provide direct
access to the displayed movies associated with the thumbnails
depicted on screen 1416. The categories 1420 may include one or
more selectable category names 1428. These selectable categories
1428 can include different methods of organizing the movies within
the media center. If selectable category 1432 is selected, a new
user interface 1436 is provided as shown in FIG. 14C.
[0340] In new user interface 1436, the movie categories 1440 are
further organized into different categories 1444. By selecting user
selectable category 1448, a new user interface 1452 is provided as
shown in FIG. 14D. Here, the categories are further broken down by
year as shown in selections 1456. If user selection 1460 is
selected by the user using a user interface device, a new user
interface presentation 1464 is provided as shown in FIG. 14E.
[0341] One or more movie thumbnails may then be shown that are
associated with the selected categories. The movie thumbnails 1468
may each be selectable to present the movie associated with the
thumbnail for the user. If movie thumbnail 1472 is selected, then
the movie associated with the thumbnail 1472 may be shown or
information screen 1476, as depicted in FIG. 14F, may be provided.
The user interface screen 1476 may provide information 1480 for the
movie selected in user interface screen 1464. The user selects the
user selectable device 1484 to play the movie. In user interface
1476, the movie associated with the information 1480 may then be
presented, as shown in user interface 1488 in FIG. 14G. The user,
at some point, may access an applications panel 1492, as depicted
in user interface 1496 in FIG. 14H. The applications panel 1492 may
provide information about the movie being displayed in user
interface 1496. The above process shows the steps and different
user interfaces that are created and presented to the user when
going through a series of steps to select media to play on the
television.
[0342] A series of user interface screens 15A through 15E depict a
process of user interface interactions that occur if a user selects
a back button 752 to proceed through screens to reach higher menus
or media center user interfaces. A first user interface 1496 is
similar to that shown in FIG. 14H. Here, the application panel 1492
can be presented over a movie being presented in the screen 1496 of
the television 100. Upon hitting the back button, the user
interface 1488 is again presented, as shown in FIG. 15B. The
application panel 1492 is hidden, and the movie can be presented in
user interface 1488.
[0343] Upon hitting the back button 752 again, user interface 1476
is again presented to the user as shown in FIG. 15C. Upon hitting
the back button again, user interface 1464 is again presented with
thumbnail 1472 shown in the catalog listing 1468 of the different
movies in the category previously selected as shown in FIG. 15D.
Upon hitting the back button for another time, user interface 1400
is again provided showing a top level menu for the movies as shown
in FIG. 15E.
[0344] In this way, the back button makes a more logical
progression of menus for the user, and the user need not go through
the same selections but may arrive at a top selection to more
quickly navigate back to a search function for a different movie.
The user need not go through screens which may not be applicable to
a search for a new movie. This type of logical progression, using
the back button, is more efficient and easier to understand for a
user than going through several menus that the user may not be
understood or the user may not remember navigating through.
[0345] A logical progression 1600 for the navigation through
different user interfaces is shown in FIG. 16. As shown in the
logical progression 1600, the user may begin with a master view
1604, which may be the same or similar to user interface 1400. Upon
selecting user interface device 1412, a regions view 1608 may be
provided, which may be the same or similar to user interface 1416.
Upon selecting a category, such as category 1432, a "genres" view
1612 may be presented. A genres view 1612 may be the same or
similar to user interface 1436. Upon selecting user interface
device 1448, a "years" view 1616 may be provided, which may be the
same or similar to user interface 1452. In some circumstances, upon
selecting user interface device, 1460, a collection view, 1636, may
be displayed. The collection view many be the same or similar to
the user interface 1464. Upon selecting movie thumbnail 1472, a
detailed view 1632 may be viewed, which may be the same or similar
to user interface 1476. Upon selecting the watch user interface
device 1484, a media player 1620 may be presented, which can play
the selected video, which may be the same or similar to user
interface 1488. Upon selecting an application panel remote control
button, or other remote control buttons 748, an onscreen controls
panel 1624 may be provided; an application panel 1492 may be
presented over the top of the movie presentation as shown in user
interface 1496 and FIG. 14H.
[0346] To navigate back through the different views using the back
button, the applications panel 1628, shown in FIG. 15A, may be
hidden and show only the onscreen controls 1624, as shown in FIG.
15B. Another selection of the back button 752 may hide the onscreen
controls and provide only the media player 1620. Upon selecting the
back button again, the detailed view 1632 may be shown as shown in
FIG. 15C. Another selection of back button may show only the
collection view 1636 shown in 15D. Then, a final selection of the
back button may provide the master view 1604, as shown in FIG. 15E.
Thus, the navigation to a media selection, and the controls or
panels associated therewith, may be different than the process of
backing the process out to a top level master view 1604.
[0347] An embodiment of a method 1700 for navigating through
selections in user interfaces presented in an intelligent
television 100 is shown in FIG. 17. While a general order for the
steps of the method 1700 is shown in FIG. 17. Generally, the method
1700 starts with a start operation 1704 and ends with an end
operation 1728. The method 1700 can include more or fewer steps or
can arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown in
FIG. 17. The method 1700 can be executed as a set of
computer-executable instructions, executed by a computer system,
and encoded or stored on a computer readable medium. Further, the
method 1700 can be executed by a gate or other hardware device or
component in an Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field
Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware device.
Hereinafter, the method 1700 shall be explained with reference to
the systems, components, modules, software, data structures, user
interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0348] A remote control 700 may receive one or more selections
associated with content, in step 1708. The selections may be made
through directional pad 760, menu button 728 through button 740, or
other selection devices. The signals may be transferred wirelessly
from the remote control 700 to the IR/RF module 354 of the
intelligent television 100. The IR/RF module 354 may transmit these
signals then to a processor 364 or other type of hardware. The
signals may then be processed through a driver 420 associated with
the operating system (OS) kernel 404. The OS kernel 404 may then
transfer the signal information to an application 416.
[0349] The application framework 412 may include an input event
dispatcher 508, which may present or provide information to a silo
manager 532 or a panel manager 536, that can control different
panels or user interfaces of the applications 416. The input event
dispatcher 508 may then provide for the signal information to allow
the application 416 to provide or present a user interface
associated with the content selection, in step 712. The user
interfaces selected may be those as shown in FIGS. 14A through
14H.
[0350] After each selection, the processor 364 may determine if
that is the last selection made, in step 1716. Here, the processor
364 may wait for another selection of content or may determine if a
different user interface selection is provided that changes the
navigation of the user interfaces. For example, if the user selects
a back button 752, on the remote control 700, the processor 364 may
determine that the last selection was made in the current
navigation series. If there is another selection made, the method
1700 may proceed NO back to step 1708 to receive another selection.
Thus, the user may navigate through a series of user interfaces, as
described in conjunction with FIGS. 14A though 14H and FIG. 16. If
this is the last selection made, the method 1700 may proceed YES to
step 1720, where the remote control 700 may receive a back
selection, in step 1720.
[0351] In step 1720, the remote control 700 may receive a selection
of a back button 752. This signal may then be transmitted to the
IR/RF module 354 and onto the processor 364. The drivers 420 may
interpret the selection in the OS kernel 404 and send this
information to an application 416. The interpretation of the
selection by the application 416 may require the application 416 to
present a hierarchical user interface with the content remaining in
focus, in step 1724. Thus, the user may proceed back out of the
navigation in conjunction with FIGS. 15A through 15E. In this way,
the content displayed in user interface 1496 remains the focus, and
need not go through the several menu selections 1608, 1612, 1616,
that required the user to find the content shown in user interface
1496. Rather, the content remains in focus, and, if the user
attempts to go back down though the menus, the user may quickly
access the content that remains in focus.
[0352] A series of user interfaces 1800, 1832, and 1840 showing
different depictions of content information associated with content
selected or displayed in a user interface are shown in FIGS. 18A
through 18C. A first user interface 1800 is shown in FIG. 18A.
Content information 1804 can be displayed in a banner. The banner
1804 can include information, such as one or more of, but not
limited to a title for the content 1808, a description of the
content 1812, thumbnail 1816 associated with the content, a time
the content is being played in a live TV application, 1820, a
network 1824 upon which the content is being presented, and other
information 1828 associated with the content.
[0353] In a separate user interface 1832, shown in FIG. 18B, a new
content information collection 1836 is shown. Here, the title 1808,
description 1812, and time 1820 may remain displayed. A thumbnail
1816 may also be displayed, however, at least some of the
information shown in user interface 1800 may not be shown in banner
1836 and user interface 1832.
[0354] A new user interface 1840 is shown with an application panel
1844 with information 1848 presented. Here, the thumbnail 1816 may
also be displayed, along with a title 1808 for the content. A new
time and date stamp 1852 may be shown with more information about
the time at which the content is displayed. A new longer
description 1856 may be presented. Other information 1828 may also
be displayed along with a small guide 1860. Thus, more information
may be displayed in the application panel 1844 than was displayed
in the other user interfaces 1800, 1832 shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B.
In this way, the same content and its associated metadata may be
presented in several different ways, depending on the user
interface presented.
[0355] For example, three different views of the content
information are shown in FIGS. 19A through 19C. In a first display
1900, a series of information is shown which may include the
episode number 1916A, the episode name 1920A, a thumbnail 1912A, a
runtime listing 1928A, and a series name 1924A. This presentation
may be similar to that shown in user interface 1800.
[0356] A second user interface 1904 may show similar information,
including the episode number 1916, the episode name 1920, and the
thumbnail 1912. However, new or additional information may be
displayed, including the original air date 1952A, a file location
1956A, and other information 1936A. Further, a description may also
be provided in Section 1932A.
[0357] A third depiction of the content information 1908 is shown
in FIG. 19C. Here, some similar information, including the
thumbnail 1912, the episode number 1916, and the episode name 1920,
may be shown as depicted in the other user interfaces 1900 and
1904. Further, some of the information may be provided that was
shown in FIG. 19B, including the additional information 1936B, and
the description 1932B. However, further information, including a
season listing 1940A, a favorites selection 1948A, and a view
selection 1944A, may also be included which provides additional
information above the other user interfaces 1900 and 1904. Thus,
the metadata associated with the content may be displayed in
several different views depending on the selections of the user and
what user interface presentations are being made.
[0358] A method 2000 for the depiction of information associated
with content in one or more different ways is shown in FIG. 20.
While a general order for the steps of the method 2000 is shown in
FIG. 20. Generally, the method 2000 starts with a start operation
2004 and ends with an end operation 2044. The method 2000 can
include more or fewer steps or can arrange the order of the steps
differently than those shown in FIG. 20. The method 2000 can be
executed as a set of computer-executable instructions, executed by
a computer system, and encoded or stored on a computer readable
medium. Further, the method 2000 can be executed by a gate or other
hardware device or component in an Application Specific Integrated
Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware
device. Hereinafter, the method 2000 shall be explained with
reference to the systems, components, modules, software, data
structures, user interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0359] A remote control 700 can receive a selection for a user
interface having content information, in step 2008. Here, the user
may select one or more user interface buttons 720A through 740, a
directional pad selection 760, or some other selection that
requires the presentation of a user interface containing content
information. The information or signal is sent from the remote
control through the IR/RF module 354 to the processor 364. The
processor 364 can execute one or more drivers 420 in the OS kernel
404. The signal information is then sent to the application
framework 412, which may provide signals for interpretation to
applications 416. The application framework 412 or an application
416 may then determine the type of user interface requested, in
step 2012. The user interfaces may be similar to those shown in
FIGS. 18A through 19C.
[0360] Based on the user interface determined in step 2012, the
application framework 412 and/or application 416 may then determine
the size of the content information display, in step 2016. For
example, there may be different size displays of content
information as described in conjunction with FIGS. 19A through 19C.
Depending on the size of the information display, more or less
information about the content may be displayed in the user
interface selected. The silo manager 532 or panel manager 536 may
receive a signal from the processor 364, through driver 420, and
then through an input event dispatcher 508 to create a user
interface, as shown in FIGS. 18A though 18C, with content
information displays, 1900, 1904, 1908.
[0361] If the requested user interface includes a LARGE content
information display 1908, the panel manager 536 or silo manager 538
may populate information within the large display 1908, in step
2020. The populated information may then be displayed, in step
2024, in the user interface. For example, large content information
display 1908 may be as shown in FIG. 18C in the application panel
1844.
[0362] If the content information is displayed in the MEDIUM
display 1904, the panel manager 536 or silo manager 538 may
populate the information within the display 1904, in step 2028. The
information may then be displayed, in step 2032, and a user
interface, similar to that show in FIG. 18B, may be presented.
[0363] If the content information is a SMALL display 1900, the
panel manger 536 or silo manager 532 may populate the information,
in step 2036, and display that information, in step 2040. The
display of information in the small display may be as that shown in
FIG. 18A.
[0364] Embodiment of a method 2100 for providing a dynamically
formatted navigation bar shown in FIG. 21. While a general order
for the steps of the method 2100 is shown in FIG. 21. Generally,
the method 2100 starts with a start operation 2104 and ends with an
end operation 2144. The method 2100 can include more or fewer steps
or can arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown
in FIG. 21. The method 2100 can be executed as a set of
computer-executable instructions, executed by a computer system,
and encoded or stored on a computer readable medium. Further, the
method 2100 can be executed by a gate or other hardware device or
component in an Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field
Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware device.
Hereinafter, the method 2100 shall be explained with reference to
the systems, components, modules, software, data structures, user
interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0365] The Intelligent TV 100 receives one or more selections
associated with a navigation bar, in step 2108. Here, the user may
select a button associated with the remote control 700, or provide
input into one or more other buttons on the Intelligent TV 100.
These signals may be sent to the processor 364 through a port
interface 352 or IR/RF module 354. The information may then be sent
on to a driver 420 to be translated. The translated information can
then be sent to a user interface application 468. The user
interface application 468 can include the silo manager 532 and/or a
panel manager 536, which may receive the signal through the input
event dispatcher 508. The information may then be used to determine
what selections were made, and what user interfaces need to be
provided that have a navigation bar.
[0366] For example, the user may select the movies user interface
device 2204, shown in user interface 2200 of FIG. 22A. This
selection then causes a new user interface to be provided. With
each user interface, the panel manager 536 can determine the
content and format of the navigation bar, in step 2112. The content
and format of the navigation bar may be set or changed depending on
what needs to be viewed within each navigation bar. For example,
the navigation bar 2208, in FIG. 22A, is a single banner navigation
bar across the top of the screen with only four different user
interface devices that may be selected by a user. However, if the
content of that navigation bar is too great to be provided over the
banner area, as shown in FIG. 22A, the user interface may have to
change to another user interface 2212, as shown in FIG. 22B. Here,
the navigation bar 2216 is displayed vertically as a series of user
selectable devices arranged in rows. These rows are provided
because the navigation bar could not displayed across the top of a
banner with the amount of information that needs to be provided in
the navigation bar.
[0367] Therefore, the panel manager 536 can determine the format
and characteristics of the user interface, the content in the
navigation bar, and/or what other information needs to be provided,
in step 2116. These characteristics determine the location of the
navigation bar and how the navigation bar may be navigated.
[0368] In step 2120, the panel manger 536 determines if the user
interface, based on its format and characteristics, can contain the
navigation bar based on the navigation bar's content and format, in
step 2120. In some circumstances, the panel manger 536 must
determine the space available for the navigation bar in the banner
section of the user interface, or another section of the user
interface, and the amount of content that needs to be displayed by
the navigation bar. Based on the available space and the amount of
space needed, the panel manager 536 can determine if the navigation
bar can be displayed in certain situations or in certain locations.
If the portion of the user interface can contain the navigation
bar, then method 2100 proceeds YES to step 2124. However, if the
user interface cannot contain the navigation bar, then method 2100
proceeds NO to step 2128.
[0369] In step 2124, the panel manager 536 renders the navigation
bar similar to that shown in FIG. 22A. However, if the navigation
bar cannot be contained in the banner, the panel manager 536 can
determine if a drop down navigation bar is needed, in step 2128.
Thus, the panel manager 536 determines if a drop down navigation
bar, having one or more categories listed in the banner, similar to
FIG. 22A, but with selectable drop down menus for each of the
categories, can be displayed in the banner portion. If the drop
down navigation bar is needed, then method 2100 proceeds YES to
step 2136, where that drop down navigation bar is rendered, similar
to that shown in FIG. 22C. However, if the drop down navigation bar
is not needed, then method 2100 proceeds NO to step 2132, where the
panel manager 536 can render a vertical navigation bar, similar to
that shown in FIG. 22B.
[0370] Depending on which navigation bar and type user interface is
determined, the panel manager 536 can present the user interface,
in step 2140. An example of a drop down menu 2220 is shown in FIG.
22C. Here, in user interface 2220, there are several categories
2224, 2228, and 2232, each representing a drop down menu, similar
to that shown in section 2236. This type of drop down menu bar
allows for the consolidation of a great amount of space and data
into the user interface.
[0371] An embodiment of information used by the panel manager 536
to determine how to render the user interface of the navigation bar
is shown in FIG. 23. Here, the database 2300 can contain
information about categories that are to be displayed in the
navigation bar. Thus, each navigation bar item may have a category
2312 and concomitant metadata 2316. Thus, the category 2312 can
include the name of the information, while the metadata 2316
describes the space needed to display this category name.
[0372] Each category 2304a-2304c may have one or more subcategories
2308a-2308c. These subcategories 2308 may be the items that need to
be displayed in a drop down menu or in a vertical navigation bar. A
category 2312 can consist of the top level category, such as those
shown in navigation bar 2208, in FIG. 22A. The subcategories 2308
may be similar to those shown in section 2236 of FIG. 22C. In the
example shown in FIG. 23, there are three different categories,
2304a, b, and c, that each have their own subcategories, 2308a, b,
and c. Each category 2304 can have different numbers of
subcategories 2308 based on the type of category or the information
associated therewith.
[0373] An embodiment of a method 2400 to persist a notification
alert may be as shown in FIG. 24. While a general order for the
steps of the method 2400 is shown in FIG. 24. Generally, the method
2400 starts with a start operation 2404 and ends with an end
operation 2452. The method 2400 can include more or fewer steps or
can arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown in
FIG. 24. The method 2400 can be executed as a set of
computer-executable instructions, executed by a computer system,
and encoded or stored on a computer readable medium. Further, the
method 2400 can be executed by a gate or other hardware device or
component in an Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field
Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware device.
Hereinafter, the method 2400 shall be explained with reference to
the systems, components, modules, software, data structures, user
interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0374] An Intelligent Television 100 can receive an action, in step
2408. The action may be any event captured by the input event
dispatcher 508, or other device input or operation controlled by
the OS kernel 404. An action can be events, such as, receiving an
updated EPG, receiving a notification that a favorite program is
beginning, or some other event.
[0375] The processor 364 may send the indication of the event to
the user interface display 468. The user interface application 468
includes a panel manager 536 and a silo manager 532 to control the
user interface. The panel manager 536 may send the event
information to the notification panel 528. Notification panel 528
may then provide a notification, in step 2412. The notification
panel module 528 can provide the information in a pop-up panel or
user interface for the user to view.
[0376] The notification panel 528 may then determine whether the
user reacts to the notification, in step 2416. The user can react
by selecting some user interface device in the notification panel
to switch the user interface to some other view. Further, the user
may dismiss or close the notification panel. If the user selects
information from the notification panel, then method 2400 proceeds
YES to step 2420. However, if the user does not select the
device(s) inside the notification panel, but dismisses or closes
the panel, then method 2400 proceeds NO to step 2432, where the
notification may be dismissed.
[0377] The notification panel 528 can provide notification
information in step 2420. This information may allow the user to do
some type of action or selection. For example, the notification
information may alert the user that one of their favorite programs
is about to start. There may be a device in the user notification
information that allows the user to select the device and navigate
to the content that the user has made a favorite.
[0378] The Intelligent Television 100 can receive the user action
or selection in step 2424. Here, the user may select a button, on
the remote control 700 or other user interface, that may select the
user interface device and notification information explained in
conjunction with step 2420. This user action selection may then
trigger the user interface 468 to act on the selection, in step
2428. Thus, if, for example, the notification was for a favorite
program about to begin, user interface 468 switches to that program
or content for the user.
[0379] In step 2432, the user interface application panel manager
536 dismisses the notification by sending a signal to the
notification panel 528 to discontinue the notification. Here, the
notification panel 528 can dismiss the notification and may create
a missing notification icon, in step 5436. As shown in FIG. 25, a
user interface 2500 is presented with a dismissed or missed
notification icon 2504 in one corner of the user interface display
2500. Thus, the user is alerted that a notification has not been
read, as the icon persists for a period of time.
[0380] The notification panel 528 may then determine if an action
is taken on the icon 2504, in step 2440. For example, an action may
include the user selecting the icon by using a button on the remote
control 700 to move a cursor or focus to the icon 2504, then
selecting that icon 2504. If action is taken on the icon, the
method 2400 proceeds YES to step 2444. If no action is taken,
method 2400 proceeds NO to step 2448. If an action is taken on the
icon, the icon notification information may be presented, as
described in step 2420, or in other circumstances, the notification
icon 2504 is dismissed by the notification panel 528, in step 2444.
Thus, the notification panel 528 can eliminate the icon 2504 from
user interface 2500.
[0381] If no action is taken, the notification panel 528 can
persist or maintain the display of the icon 2504, in step 2448.
Thus, the notification icon 2504 can remain on the user interface
2500 until the user takes some action, to either view the
notification or to dismiss the notification icon 2504. As such, the
user remains informed that notifications have been provided, and
the notifications require the user's attention.
[0382] An embodiment of the method 2600 for providing a user
interface having contextual selection areas is provided in FIG. 26.
While a general order for the steps of the method 2600 is shown in
FIG. 26. Generally, the method 2600 starts with a start operation
2604 and ends with an end operation 2624. The method 2600 can
include more or fewer steps or can arrange the order of the steps
differently than those shown in FIG. 26. The method 2600 can be
executed as a set of computer-executable instructions, executed by
a computer system, and encoded or stored on a computer readable
medium. Further, the method 2600 can be executed by a gate or other
hardware device or component in an Application Specific Integrated
Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware
device. Hereinafter, the method 2600 shall be explained with
reference to the systems, components, modules, software, data
structures, user interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0383] The user may select a user interface or other selection by
using the remote control 700 to send a signal to the Intelligent
Television 100. The signal may be received at a port interface 352,
or IR/RF module 354, and can be provided to the processor 364. A
driver 420, executed by the processor 364, can translate the
signal, which may then be sent to the user interface application
468. The user interface application 468 can include a panel manager
536 that can determine that the selection requires the provision of
a master panel.
[0384] The panel manger 536 can then provide a master panel, which
has three contextual regions, in step 2612. As shown in FIG. 27, a
master panel 2700 can include a header region in 2704, a content
region in 2708, and a footer region in 2712. Selections of user
interface devices, within each of these regions, has different
functionality based on being in those different regions. Thus, the
user interface devices presented in the header region 2704 contain
certain elements that provide a contextual navigation that may be
learned by the user. The content area 2708 can include displays or
devices, having a context that may be learned by the user. Further,
the footer region in 2712 can also include user interface devices
or other information that may be learned by a user.
[0385] As an example, the header area 2704 can include a navigation
bar and title elements. This header information may be common
across any type of master panel. The content area 2708 or body area
can include content layouts and scroll items that are either listed
horizontally or vertically. Thus, the content area 2708 can provide
content selections that the user will understand and look for in
other master panels. Finally, the footer area 2712 can include
system and contextual information and hot key related events; thus,
this information may be to access certain global menus and other
information that may be learned by the user and desired in other
master panels.
[0386] The panel manager 536 may receive a selection 2616 in the
user interface 2700. The panel manager 536 may then determine which
region 2704 through 2712 the selection was received in, in step
2620. Based on the region where the selection was made, the panel
manager 536 can provide an action based on the selection mode 2624
in the area of the panel, in step 2624. Thus, the area of selection
for user interface may govern how the panel manger 536 affects
actions within the user interface.
[0387] An embodiment of method 2800 for providing information in
badges and playback control is shown in FIG. 28, with reference to
FIGS. 29 through 30. The method of providing badges may be similar
or the same at to those methods, systems, etc. described in U.S.
PCT Application No. PCT/US13/36826, entitled "METHODS AND DISPLAYS
FOR PROVIDING INTELLIGENT TELEVISION BADGES," filed on Apr. 16,
2013, which is incorporated herein by reference for all that it
teaches and for all purposes. While a general order for the steps
of the method 2800 is shown in FIG. 28. Generally, the method 2800
starts with a start operation 2804 and ends with an end operation
2824. The method 2800 can include more or fewer steps or can
arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown in FIG.
28. The method 2800 can be executed as a set of computer-executable
instructions, executed by a computer system, and encoded or stored
on a computer readable medium. Further, the method 2800 can be
executed by a gate or other hardware device or component in an
Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate
Array, or other type of hardware device. Hereinafter, the method
2800 shall be explained with reference to the systems, components,
modules, software, data structures, user interfaces, etc. described
herein.
[0388] Here, the Intelligent TV 100 can receive a selection for a
menu or user interface, including cards or other display elements
that can include badges or content descriptions, in step 2808. This
selection may be received by the IR/RF module 354, from the remote
control 700, and provided to the processor 364 to be translated by
a driver 420. The selection may then be provided to the silo
manager 532 and/or the panel manager 536 to provide a user
interface display. The panel manager 536 can receive the input
event through the input dispatcher 508, and may then use the
information in the selection to determine the type of panel to
provide to the user.
[0389] The panel manager 536 may then determine the status or
metadata of the content to be displayed in the user interface, in
step 2812. Here, the panel manager 536 may access one or more
databases, such as databases 632 through 640, which provide data
for the Intelligent Television 100. The databases may include
metadata about the content. This metadata may include how much of
the program has been watched, when the program was uploaded to the
Intelligent TV 100, whether the program is a favorite, whether the
program is new, whether the program was recently added, etc. This
information may then be retrieved by the panel manager 536.
[0390] The panel manager 536, in an example, may then provide a
user interface with one or more badges, in one or more areas, that
are based on the determinations or status and metadata, in step
2816. For example, the panel manager 536 can provide a user
interface 2900 that includes thumbnails 2904-2924 associated with
one or more items of content. One or more of the content thumbnails
or icons 2904-2924 can include a badge 2928-2944. For example, the
user interface 2900 includes thumbnails 2904 through 2924. Each
thumbnail has a different badge, which can represent information
about the content represented by the thumbnails.
[0391] For example, thumbnail 2904 includes a badge 2928 that
represents that the content is new. Thumbnail 2908 includes badge
2932A, which represents that that program has been partially
watched. In a similar instance, badge 2932B, shown in thumbnail
2912, indicates that the show has been watched previously. The
badges 2932 can represent the amount of a program that has been
watched from 25% to 50% to 75% to completely watched. The badge
2936, shown in thumbnail 2916, represents that that show is live
and is currently being aired. Badge 2940, provided with thumbnail
2920, represents that the content represented by thumbnail 2920 is
fresh or has been newly added to this menu or the Intelligent TV
100. Finally, badge 2944, provided with thumbnail 2924, can
represent that this content is a favorite of the user. These badges
2928-2944 can be presented in many types of user interfaces to
provide a quick and easy way to discern information about the
content.
[0392] In step 2820, the panel manager 536 can provide a playback
screen, similar to screen 3000 shown in FIG. 30, which may include
status information. For example, the playback footer 3004 can
include an information display 3008 that indicates how much of the
program has been watched. In this way, the user can determine the
amount of program that has been viewed, and how much is remaining.
This information provides a quick and easy visual indication, in
the playback control 3004, of where the user is in the currently
watched content.
[0393] An embodiment of a method 3100 for providing visual messages
having dynamically changing picture content is shown in FIG. 31A.
While a general order for the steps of the method 3100 is shown in
FIG. 31. Generally, the method 3100 starts with a start operation
3104 and ends with an end operation 3124. The method 3100 can
include more or fewer steps or can arrange the order of the steps
differently than those shown in FIG. 31A. The method 3100 can be
executed as a set of computer-executable instructions, executed by
a computer system, and encoded or stored on a computer readable
medium. Further, the method 3100 can be executed by a gate or other
hardware device or component in an Application Specific Integrated
Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware
device. Hereinafter, the method 3100 shall be explained with
reference to the systems, components, modules, software, data
structures, user interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0394] Here, the Intelligent Television 100 can receive a selection
for a user interface that includes a picture. As explained
previously, the processor 364 may send this signal to the user
interface application 468. The user interface application 468 can
then determine the picture and the configuration for the picture,
in step 3112. Each picture may have a different aspect ratio, for
example, may be in landscape, may be in portrait, or may be
square.
[0395] The user interface application 468 may then change the
display of the user interface to allow for the differences in the
configuration of the picture. Thus, the user interface application
468 changes the thumbnail configuration of a thumbnail that
represents the picture and the user interface configuration, in
step 3116, before providing the user interface, in step 3120. An
example of changing a picture aspect ratio is shown in FIG. 32.
[0396] The user interface 3200 can include a picture 3204. Here,
the picture 3204 may have a square, an undetermined, or a default
aspect ratio, where the pictures aspect ratio or configuration is
not known. Thus, the picture may be adjusted to fit into the
default area for at thumbnail, as shown in user interface device
3200. In another user interface device 3208, the configuration of
the picture 3216 is known, and the aspect ratio is a special
landscape configuration. The user interface 3208 is adjusted to
allow for that aspect ratio in the picture thumbnail 3212. To
accommodate the larger picture, the text within the user interface
3208 may be adjusted such that the configuration of the correct
configuration for the picture 3212 is provided in the user
interface device 3208.
[0397] A final user interface device 3220 provides for a thumbnail
3224. Here, the picture 3228 has a special portrait configuration,
and the user interface 3220 is adjusted to allow for the thumbnail
3224 to be displayed in a similar configuration to the picture
3228. Here, the text area 3220 grows or widens as the text area
adjusts to the configuration of the thumbnail 3224.
[0398] An embodiment of a method 3128 for switching the display of
content when changing channels or providing other user interface
transitions is shown in FIG. 31B. While a general order for the
steps of the method 3128 is shown in FIG. 31B. Generally, the
method 3128 starts with a start operation 3132 and ends with an end
operation 3144. The method 3128 can include more or fewer steps or
can arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown in
FIG. 31B. The method 3128 can be executed as a set of
computer-executable instructions, executed by a computer system,
and encoded or stored on a computer readable medium. Further, the
method 3128 can be executed by a gate or other hardware device or
component in an Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field
Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware device.
Hereinafter, the method 3128 shall be explained with reference to
the systems, components, modules, software, data structures, user
interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0399] An Intelligent Television 100 can receive a transition
selection, in step 3136. For example, the user may request a
channel change with the remote control 700, which request is
received by the IR/RF module 354, and acted upon by the processor
364. This transition selection may be provided to user interface
application 468 to effect a change to the other channel. In
changing the channel, the user interface application 468 may blur
the content before the change, in step 3140. The blurred content
indicates to the user that the user is moving from one channel to
the next and provides a more logical and visually pleasing
transition period. These transitions may be as shown in FIGS. 33A
and 33B. Here, a first user interface 3300 is provided before the
transition selection is received by the Intelligent TV 100. Upon
receiving the transition selection, a new user interface 3304 is
provided where the content is blurred and before the transition is
made. The blurring of the content may be made during channel
changes when other menus are provided or other types of user
interface devices are provided in the user interface. The blurred
content can be viewed before the user interface presenting the new
content is shown over the old content.
[0400] An embodiment for providing a user interface that is
dynamically changed based on the context of the information
provided is shown in FIG. 34. While a general order for the steps
of the method 3400 is shown in FIG. 34. Generally, the method 3400
starts with a start operation 3404 and ends with an end operation
3424. The method 3400 can include more or fewer steps or can
arrange the order of the steps differently than those shown in FIG.
34. The method 3400 can be executed as a set of computer-executable
instructions, executed by a computer system, and encoded or stored
on a computer readable medium. Further, the method 3400 can be
executed by a gate or other hardware device or component in an
Application Specific Integrated Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate
Array, or other type of hardware device. Hereinafter, the method
3400 shall be explained with reference to the systems, components,
modules, software, data structures, user interfaces, etc. described
herein.
[0401] Here, the Intelligent Television 100 can receive a selection
for a user interface associated with content, in step 3408. The
processing of the selection may be as previously described herein.
The user interface application 468 can determine the type of user
interface requested and what changes need to be made based on the
content that is to be provided. For example, the type of user
interface can be for a content selection user interface or may be a
timeline-based user interface. If the user interface to be provided
is content-selection-based, the method 3400 proceeds through the
SELECTION branch to step 3420. In contrast, if the type is a
timeline user interface, the method 3400 proceeds through the
TIMELINE branch to step 3416.
[0402] In step 3420, a Fibonacci user interface may be provided for
selecting content. An example of a Fibonacci user interface 3500 is
shown in FIG. 35. Here, the user interface 3500 includes a set of
content selections 3504 through 3512 that have different aspect
ratios that change based on some information about the content.
Thumbnails or pictures represent the content. The design of the
user interface 3500 is a Fibonacci spiral, as shown in insert 3516.
The thumbnail pictures 3504-3512 decrease in size and may be
changed or included based on metadata, for example, a number of
favorites, what the Intelligent TV 100 believes to be most
important to the user, or by some other categorization.
[0403] A timeline view 3600 is shown in FIG. 36. Here, the content
thumbnails are provided in a row or rows arranged from left to
right, and may include one or more demarcations 3604. Demarcations
3604 can represent dates to which the content is associated. For
example, all icons to the right of demarcation 3604 apply to March
24th. Likewise, icons or thumbnails to the left of demarcation 3604
represent content provided or associated with a date before March
24th. Thus, content 3608 has a different date or timeline
relationship than content 3612. This timeline view 3600, provided
in step 3416, may be provided only if the content has a date
context, or may be better displayed in this timeline view.
[0404] An embodiment of a method 3700 for providing a search panel
while reviewing content is presented in FIG. 37. While a general
order for the steps of the method 3700 is shown in FIG. 37.
Generally, the method 3700 starts with a start operation 3704 and
ends with an end operation 3724. The method 3700 can include more
or fewer steps or can arrange the order of the steps differently
than those shown in FIG. 37. The method 3700 can be executed as a
set of computer-executable instructions, executed by a computer
system, and encoded or stored on a computer readable medium.
Further, the method 3700 can be executed by a gate or other
hardware device or component in an Application Specific Integrated
Circuit, a Field Programmable Gate Array, or other type of hardware
device. Hereinafter, the method 3700 shall be explained with
reference to the systems, components, modules, software, data
structures, user interfaces, etc. described herein.
[0405] While viewing content, the Intelligent TV 100 can receive a
request to provide for an unrelated search, in step 3708. Here, the
user may select a button on the remote control 700 to request a
search panel to do an unrelated search, or a search for information
not associated with the content being provided.
[0406] The user interface application 468 may eventually receive
the request as described herein before. The user interface
application 468 may then provide the search panel, in step 3712.
For example, as shown in FIG. 38, the user interface application
468 can provide a sidebar 3804, in user interface 3800. The sidebar
3804 can include an area to enter search information 3808 and an
area to provide search results 3812. This sidebar 3804 can be
provided while the content continues to be viewed in area 3816.
[0407] The user interface application 468 can receive search terms
in search area 3808, during step 3716. The search terms allow the
user interface application 468 to provide a dynamically updating
list of search results, in area 3812, while the search terms are
being entered. Thus, the user interface application 468 can receive
information from the VOD subservice 620, the EPG subservice 624,
the media subservice 628, or some other data service 432. While the
search terms are being entered, the user interface application 468
provides the search results in the panel, in step 3720. The search
results continue to be provided while the content continues to be
displayed in area 3816, and may be continued to be viewed by the
user.
[0408] The exemplary systems and methods of this disclosure have
been described in relation to an Intelligent Television. However,
to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present disclosure, the
preceding description omits a number of known structures and
devices. This omission is not to be construed as a limitation of
the scopes of the claims. Specific details are set forth to provide
an understanding of the present disclosure. It should however be
appreciated that the present disclosure may be practiced in a
variety of ways beyond the specific detail set forth herein.
[0409] Furthermore, while the exemplary aspects, embodiments,
and/or configurations illustrated herein show the various
components of the system collocated, certain components of the
system can be located remotely, at distant portions of a
distributed network, such as a LAN and/or the Internet, or within a
dedicated system. Thus, it should be appreciated, that the
components of the system can be combined in to one or more devices,
or collocated on a particular node of a distributed network, such
as an analog and/or digital telecommunications network, a
packet-switch network, or a circuit-switched network. It will be
appreciated from the preceding description, and for reasons of
computational efficiency, that the components of the system can be
arranged at any location within a distributed network of components
without affecting the operation of the system. For example, the
various components can be located in a switch such as a PBX and
media server, gateway, in one or more communications devices, at
one or more users' premises, or some combination thereof.
Similarly, one or more functional portions of the system could be
distributed between a telecommunications device(s) and an
associated computing device.
[0410] Furthermore, it should be appreciated that the various links
connecting the elements can be wired or wireless links, or any
combination thereof, or any other known or later developed
element(s) that is capable of supplying and/or communicating data
to and from the connected elements. These wired or wireless links
can also be secure links and may be capable of communicating
encrypted information. Transmission media used as links, for
example, can be any suitable carrier for electrical signals,
including coaxial cables, copper wire and fiber optics, and may
take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generated
during radio-wave and infra-red data communications.
[0411] Also, while the flowcharts have been discussed and
illustrated in relation to a particular sequence of events, it
should be appreciated that changes, additions, and omissions to
this sequence can occur without materially affecting the operation
of the disclosed embodiments, configuration, and aspects.
[0412] In another embodiment, the systems and methods of this
disclosure can be implemented in conjunction with a special purpose
computer, a programmed microprocessor or microcontroller and
peripheral integrated circuit element(s), an ASIC or other
integrated circuit, a digital signal processor, a hard-wired
electronic or logic circuit such as discrete element circuit, a
programmable logic device or gate array such as PLD, PLA, FPGA,
PAL, special purpose computer, any comparable means, or the like.
In general, any device(s) or means capable of implementing the
methodology illustrated herein can be used to implement the various
aspects of this disclosure. Exemplary hardware that can be used for
the disclosed embodiments, configurations and aspects includes
computers, handheld devices, telephones (e.g., cellular, Internet
enabled, digital, analog, hybrids, and others), and other hardware
known in the art. Some of these devices include processors (e.g., a
single or multiple microprocessors), memory, nonvolatile storage,
input devices, and output devices. Furthermore, alternative
software implementations including, but not limited to, distributed
processing or component/object distributed processing, parallel
processing, or virtual machine processing can also be constructed
to implement the methods described herein.
[0413] In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be
readily implemented in conjunction with software using object or
object-oriented software development environments that provide
portable source code that can be used on a variety of computer or
workstation platforms. Alternatively, the disclosed system may be
implemented partially or fully in hardware using standard logic
circuits or VLSI design. Whether software or hardware is used to
implement the systems in accordance with this disclosure is
dependent on the speed and/or efficiency requirements of the
system, the particular function, and the particular software or
hardware systems or microprocessor or microcomputer systems being
utilized.
[0414] In yet another embodiment, the disclosed methods may be
partially implemented in software that can be stored on a storage
medium, executed on programmed general-purpose computer with the
cooperation of a controller and memory, a special purpose computer,
a microprocessor, or the like. In these instances, the systems and
methods of this disclosure can be implemented as program embedded
on personal computer such as an applet, JAVA.RTM. or CGI script, as
a resource residing on a server or computer workstation, as a
routine embedded in a dedicated measurement system, system
component, or the like. The system can also be implemented by
physically incorporating the system and/or method into a software
and/or hardware system.
[0415] Although the present disclosure describes components and
functions implemented in the aspects, embodiments, and/or
configurations with reference to particular standards and
protocols, the aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations are not
limited to such standards and protocols. Other similar standards
and protocols not mentioned herein are in existence and are
considered to be included in the present disclosure. Moreover, the
standards and protocols mentioned herein and other similar
standards and protocols not mentioned herein are periodically
superseded by faster or more effective equivalents having
essentially the same functions. Such replacement standards and
protocols having the same functions are considered equivalents
included in the present disclosure.
[0416] The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments,
and/or configurations, includes components, methods, processes,
systems and/or apparatus substantially as depicted and described
herein, including various aspects, embodiments, configurations
embodiments, subcombinations, and/or subsets thereof. Those of
skill in the art will understand how to make and use the disclosed
aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations after understanding the
present disclosure. The present disclosure, in various aspects,
embodiments, and/or configurations, includes providing devices and
processes in the absence of items not depicted and/or described
herein or in various aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations
hereof, including in the absence of such items as may have been
used in previous devices or processes, e.g., for improving
performance, achieving ease and\or reducing cost of
implementation.
[0417] The foregoing discussion has been presented for purposes of
illustration and description. The foregoing is not intended to
limit the disclosure to the form or forms disclosed herein. In the
foregoing Detailed Description for example, various features of the
disclosure are grouped together in one or more aspects,
embodiments, and/or configurations for the purpose of streamlining
the disclosure. The features of the aspects, embodiments, and/or
configurations of the disclosure may be combined in alternate
aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations other than those
discussed above. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted
as reflecting an intention that the claims require more features
than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following
claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of
a single foregoing disclosed aspect, embodiment, and/or
configuration. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated
into this Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own
as a separate preferred embodiment of the disclosure.
[0418] Moreover, though the description has included description of
one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations and certain
variations and modifications, other variations, combinations, and
modifications are within the scope of the disclosure, e.g., as may
be within the skill and knowledge of those in the art, after
understanding the present disclosure. It is intended to obtain
rights which include alternative aspects, embodiments, and/or
configurations to the extent permitted, including alternate,
interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions, ranges or
steps to those claimed, whether or not such alternate,
interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions, ranges or
steps are disclosed herein, and without intending to publicly
dedicate any patentable subject matter.
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