Omni menu for an audio/visual network
First Claim
1. A digital broadcast network environment comprising:
- a) a plurality of content providers capable of achieving and maintaining interoperability within said digital broadcast network environment, said content providers each containing a series of individual menu items existing at various levels and functioning to control said content providers;
b) a digital broadcast rendering device for controlling the interoperability of said content providers existing within said network environment, said digital broadcast rendering device itself also existing as a said content provider; and
c) a single, unified graphical user interface menu, wherein a uniform menu Application Program Interface is utilized to assimilate said individual menu items of said content providers to form said single, unified graphical user interface menu, said unified graphical user interface menu capable of controlling said individual menu items of said content providers at any level.
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Abstract
The present invention combines all menus of all appliances (e.g., including the set-top-box, TV, and networking devices), all available services (whether selected or not), all available events (including co-branded and promoted events), all available channels, and all promoted material into a single, unified interface or OmniMenu. In this regard, the user has immediate and easy access to and control of all content information contained within a consumer electronics network environment, whether that content information stems from a broadcast, from an appliance itself, from an informational service such as the Internet, or from the user himself/herself. The present invention defined menu API enables all appliances and broadcast applications to register and construct their individual menus to collectively assemble the single OmniMenu. The OmniMenu assembly is achieved through a uniform menu API, wherein the menu API enables all controlled hardware, software, and content components to collectively construct the unified view of the available services, and present this view within a single menu. This menu can be updated in real-time, on-the-fly, as new appliances are connected, or the broadcast data services change.
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Citations
39 Claims
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1. A digital broadcast network environment comprising:
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a) a plurality of content providers capable of achieving and maintaining interoperability within said digital broadcast network environment, said content providers each containing a series of individual menu items existing at various levels and functioning to control said content providers;
b) a digital broadcast rendering device for controlling the interoperability of said content providers existing within said network environment, said digital broadcast rendering device itself also existing as a said content provider; and
c) a single, unified graphical user interface menu, wherein a uniform menu Application Program Interface is utilized to assimilate said individual menu items of said content providers to form said single, unified graphical user interface menu, said unified graphical user interface menu capable of controlling said individual menu items of said content providers at any level. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 36, 37)
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18. A method for creating a single, unified graphical user interface menu to control consumer electronics within a networked environment comprising the steps of:
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a) installing a digital broadcast rendering device having a uniform menu Application Program Interface;
b) introducing a plurality of content providers within said networked environment via said digital broadcast rendering device, said content providers containing corresponding individual menu items;
c) identifying and controlling said content providers to achieve and maintain interoperability within said networked environment, wherein said individual menu items are registered by said uniform menu Application Program Interface;
d) causing said uniform menu Application Program Interface to classify said menu items according to their control function;
e) assembling a single, unified graphical user interface menu of all registered individual menu items, said single, unified graphical user interface menu assembled by causing said uniform menu Application Program Interface to assimilate said registered individual menu items into said single, unified graphical user interface menu; and
f) selecting, for control, said content providers and said corresponding menu items within said networked environment from said single, unified graphical user interface menu.
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34. The method of claim 187, wherein said digital broadcast renderer is a Digital TV Application Software Environment set-top-box.
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35. A method for displaying a single, unified graphical user interface menu within a consumer electronic network environment comprising:
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a) displaying a series of submenus corresponding to a type of content provider, said submenus containing respective assimilated menu items obtained from each of said content providers introduced within said consumer electronic network environment; and
b) displaying at least one of said menu items upon the selection of one of said series of submenus, said menu items containing content information corresponding to a particular feature of said content provider.
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38. A computer-readable memory configured so that it can direct a computer, contained within a consumer electronic network environment:
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a) to receive content information from a content provider into a digital broadcast rendering device, said content information is in the form of menu items;
b) to register said menu items via a uniform menu Application Program Interface;
c) to classify said menu items into submenus and menu items according to their control functions;
d) to assemble a single, unified graphical user interface menu of all registered individual menu items by causing said uniform menu Application Program Interface to assimilate said registered individual menu items into said single, unified graphical user interface menu; and
e) to allow a user to access said content information and control any of said content providers within said network environment from said single, unified graphical user interface menu.
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39. A method for causing an Application Program Interface to assemble a single, unified graphical user interface menu, said method comprising the steps of:
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a) identifying and controlling a plurality of content providers to achieve and maintain interoperability within a networked environment, said content providers having respective individual menu items containing content information enabling control of said content provider;
b) registering said individual menu items with said Application Program Interface;
c) classifying said individual menu items, according to their respective control function, as either submenus or menu items;
d) assimilating said menu items into a said single unified graphical user interface menu by initiating a message sequence to;
i) add a said submenu to said single, unified graphical user interface menu, said submenu corresponding to a particular category of said content providers;
ii) add at least one menu item to said submenu; and
iii) activate said submenu to enable viewing and selection of said submenu.
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Specification