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Access system and method for providing interactive access to an information source through a television distribution system

  • US 20040078824A1
  • Filed: 07/02/2003
  • Published: 04/22/2004
  • Est. Priority Date: 04/10/1996
  • Status: Abandoned Application
First Claim
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1. An access system for providing interactive access to information available from an information source through a television distribution system which includes:

  • a television distribution network having a network headend, a plurality of terminal ends, a plurality of upstream channels, and a plurality of downstream channels, each downstream channel for carrying a television transmission;

    headend distribution equipment interfaced to the network headend of the television distribution network for distributing the television transmissions over the respective downstream channels of the television distribution network; and

    a plurality of terminals, each terminal being interfaced to a terminal end of the television distribution network for receiving the television transmissions over the respective downstream channels of the television distribution network, each terminal also being interfaced to a display device for displaying a selected one of the television transmissions;

    the access system comprising;

    an input device associated with one of the terminals for inputting into the terminal a command for information from the information source;

    an upstream transmitter associated with the terminal and interfaced to the respective terminal end of the television distribution network for transmitting the inputted command on an upstream channel of the distribution network;

    a headend server associated with the headend distribution equipment, the headend server being interfaced to the information source;

    an upstream receiver associated with the headend distribution equipment and interfaced to the headend server for receiving the inputted command on the upstream channel of the distribution network and for forwarding the received command to the headend server, the headend server transmitting a command based on the forwarded received command to the information source, the information source transmitting the information to the headend server in response to the command transmitted to the information source;

    a data encoder associated with the headend distribution equipment, the data encoder being interfaced to the headend server for receiving the information from the headend server and for encoding the received information into at least one of the television transmissions; and

    a data decoder interfaced to the terminal for decoding the encoded information from the television transmissions, the decoded information being displayed on the display device.

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