Method and apparatus for generating a programme

• US 20050144652A1
• Filed: 11/17/2004
• Published: 06/30/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/1997
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Trevor Burke Technology Limited
• Original Assignee: Trevor Burke Technology Limited
• Inventors: Burke, Trevor John
• Application Number:
  US10/990,729
• Publication Number:
  US 20050144652A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/135
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/20 Disc-shaped record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/2545 CDs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/90 Tape-like record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/031 Electronic editing of digitised analogue information signals, e.g. audio or video signals
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/102 Programmed access in sequence to addressed parts of tracks of operating record carriers access by moving the head G11B3/08, G11B5/54, G11B7/085, G11B21/022; by moving the record carrier G11B15/005, G11B17/005, by driving of both record carrier and head G11B15/1816
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/3027 used signal is digitally coded
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/07 characterised by processes or methods for the generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23412 for generating or manipulating the scene composition of objects, e.g. MPEG-4 objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26603 for automatically generating descriptors from content, e.g. when it is not made available by its provider, using content analysis techniques
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• 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 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4508 Management of client data or end-user data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/454 Content or additional data filtering, e.g. blocking advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4662 characterized by learning algorithms
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 : End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 : for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 : for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 : for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 : End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 : for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 : involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• 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 21/8405 : represented by keywords
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 : by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8541 : involving branching, e.g. to different story endings
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 : using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8549 : Creating video summaries, e.g. movie trailer retrieval in video databases by using presentations in form of a video summary G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/858 : Linking data to content, e.g. by linking an URL to a video object, by creating a hotspot
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 : Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 : on tape
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/9201 : involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the video signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/162 : Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only

Abstract

A method and apparatus for generating a programme for presentation as a sequence of programme elements from a set of pre-recorded programme elements which may be transmitted to a receiver. Programme elements each representing for example an event are classified on the basis of programme element content, that is the nature of the event to which the programme element relates. Each programme element is allocated to at least one of the predetermined set of classes and each programme element is stored with at least one associated programme classification code. The classification codes identify the class to which the associated programme element has been allocated. A programme element is generated by selecting at least one programme classification code and presenting programme elements associated with that selected at least one programme classification code. Users are able to generate programmes based on for example the perceived value of individual programme elements.

Claims

1. A method of presenting programme elements to a user, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of programme elements from a transmitter;

receiving a plurality of classification codes from the transmitter, at least one classification code being received for each of said plurality of programme elements, and each classification code representing a class of a predetermined set of classes to which one of said programme elements has been allocated;

displaying at least one of said plurality of programme elements to a user on a display device;

displaying a plurality of user selectable icons on said display device simultaneously with the said at least one programme element, each of said user selectable icons representing one of said plurality of programme elements, and being a visual representation of the class to which that programme element has been allocated,

receiving user input representing selection of one of said user selectable icons; and

displaying the program element associated with the icon represented by said user input on the display device.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein each class represents a type of event to which programme elements allocated to that class relate.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein each class represents a subjective assessment of the value of programme elements allocated to that class.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein said icons are displayed in an order corresponding to the temporal order of events represented by the associated programme elements.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein an operator selects a sub-set of the classes, and symbols corresponding only to programme elements of the sub-set of classes are displayed.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of programme elements are displayed simultaneously.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein still image and video programme elements are displayed simultaneously.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein only programme elements associated with a predetermined sub-set of the classes are transmitted to the receiver, the sub-set being selected by a user of the receiver.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein only received programme elements corresponding to a sub-set of the classes are stored at the receiver, the sub-set being selected by a user of the receiver.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein received programme elements and pre-recorded programme elements stored on a data carrier in a memory device of the receiver are combined to generate a programme.

11. A method according to claim 1, further comprising;

storing, received programme elements together with respective classification codes; and

reading a programme element from storage for display on said display device.

12. A method according to claim 1, wherein receiving said plurality of programme elements comprises receiving said plurality of programme elements from a broadcast transmission of such programme elements.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein receiving said plurality of classification codes comprises receiving said plurality of classification codes from a broadcast transmission of such programme elements.

14. A method of presenting programme elements to a user, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of programme elements from a remotely located transmitter;

receiving a plurality of classification codes from the remotely located transmitter, at least one classification code being received for each of said plurality of programme elements, and each classification code representing a class of a predetermined set of classes to which one of said programme elements has been allocated;

displaying at least one of said plurality of programme elements to a user on a display device;

displaying a plurality of user selectable icons on said display device simultaneously with the said at least one programme element, each of said user selectable icons representing one of said plurality of programme elements, and being a visual representation of the class to which that programme element has been allocated,

receiving user input representing selection of one of said user selectable icons; and

displaying the program element associated with the icon represented by said user input on the display device.

15. Apparatus for presenting programme elements to a user, the method comprising:

a receiver adapted to receive a plurality of programme elements from a transmitter;

a receiver adapted to receive a plurality of classification codes from the transmitter, at least one classification code being received for each of said plurality of programme elements, and each classification code representing a class of a predetermined set of classes to which one of said programme elements has been allocated;

a display device adapted to display at least one of said plurality of programme elements to a user, the display device being further adapted to display a plurality of user selectable icons simultaneously with the said at least one programme element, each of said user selectable icons representing one of said plurality of programme elements, and being a visual representation of the class to which that programme element has been allocated; and

user input means configured to receive selection of one of said user selectable icons;

wherein said display device is configured to display the program element associated with the icon represented by said user input.