Precipitation/dissolution of stored programs and segments

• US 20030236762A1
• Filed: 06/21/2002
• Published: 12/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ARRIS Enterprises LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Dimitrova, Nevenka, Agnihotri, Lalitha, Janevski, Angel
• Granted Patent: US 7,457,811 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/735 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A content maintenance system uses a time-dependent precipitation function for iteratively augmenting or removing content over time, after an initial demonstration of user interest. A plurality of parallel precipitation processes can be launched simultaneously in response to different facets of a user expression of interest. Precipitation is dependent on highlighting or extracting segment descriptors from content of interest to the user. Then segments are filtered, rated, annotated and/or prioritized from that content. The remaining segments are matched against stored search structures. When the segments match, they are precipitated out for storage and can generate new search structures.

Claims

1. A method of maintaining and updating stored information comprising executing the following operations in at least one data processing device:

maintaining a the stored information as a pool of information potentially of interest to a user;

maintaining user preference information relating to the pool;

repeatedly

identifying precipitated information for addition to or deletion from the pool, in accordance with at least

the user preference information, and

a time-dependent precipitation function.

adding or deleting the precipitated information responsive to said identifying.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying precipitated information for addition to the pool is further responsive to content already in the pool.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the time-dependent precipitation function specifies an augmentation curve for time-dependent iterative augmentation of precipitated information in response to an initial demonstration of interest by the user

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the time-dependent precipitation function specifies a dissolution curve for time-dependent iterative dissolution of precipitated information at a given time after an initial demonstration of interest by the user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the time-dependent precipitation function is

6. The method of claim 1, wherein precipitated information is used to generate search structures for matching against future received content.

7. A database embodied in a medium readable by at least one data processing device and produced in accordance with the method of claim 1.

8. Software for implementing the method of claim 1.

9. A data processing system comprising:

at least one memory embodying data and software according to claim 8;

at least one data processing device for executing the operations specified by the software.

10. A method of maintaining and updating content comprising

receiving content from a content provider

extracting highlights or segment descriptors from the content;

filtering and/or selecting significant events from the content based on objective criteria;

further filtering and/or selecting events or people from the content based on user preference information;

matching the content against stored search criteria;

prioritizing, updating and/or deleting information based on the matching.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the updating or deletion of information is based upon

user preference information, and

a time-dependent precipitation function.

12. A database embodied in a medium readable by at least one data processing device and produced in accordance with the method of claim 10.

13. Software for implementing the method of claim 10.

14. A data processing system comprising:

at least one memory embodying data and software according to claim 13;

at least one data processing device for executing the operations specified by the software.

15. A method for maintaining and updating stored information comprising executing the following operations in at least one data processing device:

maintaining a pool of information potentially of interest to a user;

maintaining evolving user preference information relating to the pool;

launching a plurality of parallel precipitation processes for seeking out additional information for addition to the pool relating to different aspects of an expression of user interest, in accordance with the evolving user preference information.

16. A database embodied in a medium readable by at least one data processing device and produced in accordance with the method of claim 15

17. Software for implementing the method of claim 15

18. A data processing system comprising:

at least one memory embodying data and software according to claim 17

at least one data processing device for executing the operations specified by the software.

19. A database embodied in a medium readable by at least one data processing device, the database comprising

a plurality of entries derived from received and processed content, each entry comprising a plurality of fields, the fields comprising:

time of generation;

popularity rating;

category;

keyword;

entity;

event;

at least one source.

20. The database of claim 19, wherein at least one of the entity, event, or keyword fields is empty for at least one entry.