Transportable identifier and system and method to facilitate access to broadcast data

• US 20030002536A1
• Filed: 06/28/2001
• Published: 01/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wong, Curtis G., Drucker, Steven M., Mundie, Craig J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,099,952 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/487
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/93 which locates resources of other pieces of information, e.g. URL [Uniform Resource Locator]
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/73 using meta-information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1831 Tracking arrangements for later retrieval, e.g. recording contents, participants activities or behavior, network status
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73

Abstract

A system and method are disclosed which enable a user to locate target data from a temporal broadcast of data. The system includes a transportable identifier that represents the target data. The identifier further includes metadata that provides sufficient information about the broadcast of the target data such that the target data can be acquired when broadcast. The transportable identifier further may be sent to one or more other users to enable such users to locate the broadcast of the target data. As a result, one or more users may employ identifiers to locate the broadcast of the target data and, in turn, monitor and/or store the target data from the temporal broadcast.

Claims

1. A system to facilitate capture of desired broadcast data, comprising:

a transportable object that represents a future temporal broadcast of target data; and

metadata encapsulated within the transportable object which enables a user of object to locate the broadcast of the target data so as to enable at least one of monitoring and recording of the target data during broadcast.

2. The system of claim 1, the broadcast of the target data corresponding to a substantially real-time broadcast of data associated with an event or condition.

3. The system of claim 2, the data associated with an event or condition characterizing a previous occurrence of the event or condition.

4. The system of claim 2, the data associated with an event or condition characterizing a substantially live occurrence of the event or condition.

5. The system of claim 2, further comprising:

at least one data collection device that collects data indicative of the event or condition and provides a data signal indicative thereof; and

a broadcaster that broadcasts a data stream that includes the target data, the target data being derived at least in part based on the data signal.

6. The system of claim 2, further comprising

a plurality of data collection devices that collect data indicative of the event or condition;

the collection devices providing data signals indicative of the collected data; and

an aggregator that selectively aggregates data based on the data signals provided by the collection devices to provide aggregated data; and

at least a portion of the aggregated data defining the target data represented by the object.

7. The system of claim 6, further comprising a recognition system operative to discern an identity of an entity and stamp part of the collected data with identifying data indicative of the identity of the entity so as to provide entity-specific data.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising a multiplexer which separates collected data that is associated with the identity of the entity from other collected data to provide identity-specific data based on the identifying data, the aggregator aggregating the collected data so that the at least a portion of the aggregated data includes the entity-specific data.

9. The system of claim 1, the broadcast of the target data occurring substantially independently from use of the object to locate the target data.

10. The system of claim 1, the target data representing at least one of audio data, video data, and sensor data.

11. A system to facilitate access to a presentation of data, comprising;

N number of sources that collect data, N being an integer ≧

1;

an identification system that stamps portions of the collected data with identifying data based on at least one of time, an event or condition, and an entity to provide stamped data;

an aggregator that aggregates portions of the stamped data and provides aggregated data; and

a transportable identifier that identifies a location associated with a temporal presentation of at least a selected portion of the aggregated data.

12. The system of claim 11, the collected data further comprising at least one of audio and video media.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

a recognition system operative to recognize an identity of an entity being captured as the media by the N sources;

a multiplexer operative to separate captured media associated with the entity from other captured media collected by the N sources; and

the aggregator being operative to aggregate the collected data so that the selected portion of the aggregated data includes the captured media associated with the entity.

14. The system of claim 11, the temporal presentation corresponding to a substantially real-time broadcast of data associated with an event or condition.

15. The system of claim 14, the temporal presentation being derived from stored data associated with a previous occurrence of the event or condition.

16. The system of claim 14, the temporal presentation corresponding to a substantially live occurrence of the event or condition.

17. The system of claim 11, the temporal presentation occurring substantially independently from use of the transportable identifier.

18. The system of claim 11, the transportable identifier data representing at least one of audio data, video data, and sensor data embodied in the temporal presentation.

19. A system to facilitate access to a temporal presentation of data, comprising:

N number of sources that collect data, N being an integer ≧

1;

an identification system that stamps portions of the collected data with identifying data to provide stamped data;

the identifying data identifying portions of the collected data associated with an entity;

a multiplexer operative to separate stamped data associated with the entity from other of the collected data based on the identifying data; and

an aggregator that aggregates the collected data to provide aggregated data; and

a transportable identifier that identifies a location associated with a temporal presentation of at least a selected portion of the aggregated data that includes data associated with the entity.

20. A system to facilitate access to data, comprising:

means for representing a temporal broadcast of target data;

the means for representing being transportable;

means for encapsulating information within the means for representing;

the encapsulated information enabling the temporal broadcast of the target data to be located, such that at least one of monitoring and recording of the target data during the temporal broadcast thereof is enabled.

21. The system of claim 20, further comprising means for transporting the means for representing to an intended user, such that the user can employ the means for representing to at least one of monitor and record the target data during the temporal broadcast thereof.

22. An encoded data signal for transmission between at least two systems, comprising:

a transportable object that represents a temporal presentation of target data for broadcast over at least one medium;

at least one data field encapsulated within the object; and

the at least one data field identifying the target data with sufficient particularity to locate the target data in the temporal presentation.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

collecting data associated with at least one of an event and condition;

providing a data signal based on the collected data; and

selectively aggregating data based on the data signal, at least a portion of the aggregated data defining the target data represented by the object.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

recognizing which portions of the collected data are associated with an entity;

separating the collected data associated with the entity from other of the collected data; and

aggregating the collected data so that the at least a portion of the aggregated data includes the collected data associated with the entity.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the collected data represents at least one of audio, video and sensor data.

23. A system to facilitate capture of desired broadcast data, comprising:

a transportable object that represents a future temporal broadcast of target data;

the broadcast of the target data occurring substantially independently from use of the object;

metadata encapsulated within the transportable object; and

the metadata including information that enables a user of object to locate the broadcast of the target data so as to facilitate at least one of monitoring and recording of the target data during broadcast.

24. A method to facilitate at least one of monitoring and recording a temporal presentation of target data, comprising:

providing a transportable identifier that represents the target data, the identifier including metadata that identifies a future temporal presentation of the target data; and

locating the temporal presentation of the target data based on the metadata so that the target data can be at least one of monitored and recorded during the temporal presentation.