Picture-in-picture and multiple video streams using slice-based encoding

• US 20030028879A1
• Filed: 10/07/2002
• Published: 02/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TiVo Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Comcast IP Holdings I LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Edmonds, Jeremy S., Gordon, Donald F., Bayrakeri, Sadik, Ludvig, Edward A., Comito, John P., Gershtein, Eugene
• Granted Patent: US 8,032,906 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/39
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23412 for generating or manipulating the scene composition of objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234318 by decomposing into objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23608 Remultiplexing multiplex streams, e.g. involving modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23614 Multiplexing of additional data and video streams arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information H04H20/28
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2365 Multiplexing of several video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4347 Demultiplexing of several video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• 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 21/4351 involving reassembling additional data, e.g. rebuilding an executable program from recovered modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44012 involving rendering scenes according to scene graphs, e.g. MPEG-4 scene graphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8146 involving graphical data, e.g. 3D object, 2D graphics
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/816 involving special video data, e.g 3D video
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 : Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen

Abstract

Methods for slice-based encoding of program guides and user interfaces. The program guides include multiple video streams for picture-in-picture and other applications. A method for encoding the program guide includes encoding a first set of slices for each of a plurality of graphics pages; and encoding a second set of slices for each of a plurality of video streams.

The user interfaces are multi-functional and may be used for electronic commerce and other applications. A method of generating the user interface includes encoding a set of slices for each of a plurality of objects, each object being characterized by an identity, at least one attribute, and at least one operation. In one embodiment of this method, the plurality of objects include an electronic commerce object, where the electronic commerce object is attributed with a first hyper text markup language (HTML) page.

A head-end centric system and apparatus for encoding and delivery of realtime and non-realtime content, including: a non-realtime content source for providing non-realtime content; a non-realtime encoder for encoding the non-realtime content into encoded non-realtime content; a realtime content source for providing realtime video and audio content; a realtime encoder for encoding the realtime video and audio content into encoded realtime video and audio; a remultiplexer for repacketizing the encoded non-realtime content and the encoded realtime video and audio into transport packets; and a re-timestamp unit coupled to the remultiplexer for providing timestamps to be applied to the transport packets in order to synchronize the realtime and non-realtime content therein.

Claims

1. A method of providing a program guide to each of a plurality of subscribers, said program guide comprising a listing of available content logically arranged as grid having time and channel parameters, said method comprising:

dividing said grid into a plurality of grid regions;

encoding said plurality of grid regions to produce respective encoded slices adapted to occupy guide regions of respective program guide pages, each of said program guide pages including a respective guide region and a common video region;

transmitting at least some of said encoded guide regions as respective bitstreams; and

transmitting an encoded common video region as a respective bitstream;

wherein each of said encoded guide regions is adapted to be combined with said encoded common video region to provide a respective program guide page.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

each of said encoded guide region bitstreams and said common video region bitstream comprises an elementary stream having a unique packet identifier (PID).

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

selecting the PID for each of said bitstreams in a manner enabling subscriber navigation of said program using PID indexing.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said elementary streams are transported to subscribers via a common transport stream.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

each of said bitstreams comprises a respective video object; and

more than two of said video objects may be displayed at one time.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a program guide selection signal from a subscriber;

identifying the content associated with the selection signal; and

providing control information to said subscriber adapted to enable the selection by said subscriber of a bitstream including the content.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

opening a session with said selecting subscriber;

establishing a content communications channel; and

transmitting said selected content via said content communications channel.

8. A method, comprising:

extracting, from a first bitstream, encoded slices representing a guide region of a first program guide page;

decoding said extracted guide region slices to produce corresponding image representative data; and

generating a presentation signal including said image representative data of said guide region of said first program guide page and a video region common to each of a plurality of program guide pages.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

extracting, from a second bitstream, encoded slices representing said common video region of said program guide pages; and

decoding said extracted slices to produce image representative data of said video region of said first program guide page.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

extracting, from said first bitstream, encoded slices representing said common video region of said program guide pages; and

decoding said extracted slices to produce image representative data of said video region of said first program guide page.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

in response to the selection of a second program guide page;

extracting, from a second bitstream, encoded slices representing a guide region of said second program guide page;

decoding said extracted guide region slices to produce image representative data of said guide region of said second program guide page; and

generating a presentation signal including said image representative data of said guide region of said second program guide page and said common video region of said plurality program guide pages.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

associating an audio signal with said presentation signal, said audio signal and said common video region of said plurality of program guide pages being contemporaneously extracted from respective bitstreams.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the guide region of each of said plurality of program guide pages is included within a respective elementary stream;

the common video region of said plurality of program guide pages is included within a respective elementary stream; and

the guide region and common video region elementary streams are included within a common transport stream.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the guide region of each of said plurality of program guide pages is included within a respective elementary stream;

the common video region of said plurality of program guide pages is included within each of two respective elementary streams; and

each of a plurality of transport streams includes at least some of the guide region elementary streams and a video region elementary stream.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein said bitstream is selected according to a corresponding packet identifier (PID).

16. A method, comprising:

extracting, from an object transport stream, a plurality of video objects representing respective image regions of an image screen, said plurality of video objects including at least one video object representing a respective one of a plurality of program guide pages, each of said plurality of program guide pages comprising a respective guide region and a common video region;

decoding said video objects to produce said image region representative data;

generating a presentation signal including said image representative data; and

in response to a selection of a program guide page video object, adapting said presentation signal to primarily include said selected program guide page video object.

17. A program guide, comprising:

a plurality of program guide pages supported by respective bitstreams;

each program guide page comprising a respective guide region and a common video region;

said common video region of said program guide pages being encoded as a first plurality of slices;

said respective guide regions of said program guide pages being encoded as respective second pluralities of slices;

each bitstream comprising the second plurality of slices corresponding to the respective supported program guide page.

18. Apparatus, comprising:

a demultiplexer, for extracting from a transport stream an elementary stream having a first packet identifier (PID) and including encoded slices representing a guide region of a first program guide page;

a decoder, for decoding said selected guide region slices to produce image representative data of said guide region of said first program guide page; and

a processor, for generating a presentation signal including said image representative data of said guide region of said first program guide page and a video region common to each of a plurality of program guide pages.