System and method of error reporting in a video distribution network

• US 20080104454A1
• Filed: 10/27/2006
• Published: 05/01/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SBC Knowledge Ventures LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: White, Scott
• Granted Patent: US 8,713,621 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/48
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0061 Error detection codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2001/0093 Point-to-multipoint
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2225 Local VOD servers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2404 Monitoring of server processing errors or hardware failure error or fault detection G06F11/07; monitoring in general G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4425 Monitoring of client processing errors or hardware failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6371 directed to network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6473 Monitoring network processes errors for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity H04L69/40

Abstract

Method, systems and devices for error reporting in a video distribution network are disclosed. A method may include determining that a network communication error has occurred in a video distribution network. The method may also include sending an error reporting interface to a video display. The method may also include receiving a send error report selection via the error reporting interface. In response to receiving the send error report selection, the method may perform at least one action.

Claims

1. A method of error reporting in a video distribution network, the method comprising:

determining that a network communication error has occurred in a video distribution network;

sending an error reporting interface to a video display device;

receiving a send error report selection via the error reporting interface; and

performing at least one action in response to receiving the send error report selection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one action includes sending a receive notice of correction option to the video display device.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving a receive notice of correction selection.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the network communication error comprises a failure of a download of video content.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein determining that the network communication error has occurred comprises receiving a notice that a remote network device has ceased a requested download.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the error reporting interface includes an error report window, and wherein the at least one action comprises closing the error report window.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one action does not include sending an error report to the video distribution network.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the network communication error comprises a failure of at least one device of the video distribution network.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the send error report selection includes a command received from a user via a remote control device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one action comprises sending an error report to a remote network device.

11. A video device, comprising

a network interface to communicate with a video distribution network;

an error report module to send an error report to a remote network device when a network communication error is detected; and

a user interface module to send a user interface including a send error report option to a video display and to receive a user selection of the send error report option.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the video device is a set-top box device.

13. The device of claim 11, wherein the video distribution network comprises an internet protocol television (IPTV) network.

14. The device of claim 11, further comprising an error detection module to detect that the network communication error has occurred.

15. The device of claim 11, wherein the network communication error is detected by receiving a message from a network device of the video distribution network indicating that the network communication error has occurred.

16. The device of claim 11, wherein the error report module automatically sends the error report to the remote network device after determining that the network communication error has occurred.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the error report module sends data to the remote network device indicating that the user selected the send error report selection in response to receiving the user selection of the send error report option.

18. The device of claim 16, wherein the error report module resends the automatically sent error report in response to receiving the user selection of the send error report option.

19. A computer-readable medium tangibly embodying instructions to manipulate a computing platform to:

determine that a network communication error has occurred in a video distribution network;

send a send error report option to a video display;

receive a send error report selection; and

perform at least one action after receiving the send error report selection.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the program of instructions further manipulate the computer platform to:

download video content from the video distribution network; and

determine that the network communication error has occurred based on the download.

21. The computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the at least one action comprises sending a network communication error report to the video distribution network.

22. The computer-readable medium of claim 19, further comprising instructions to manipulate the computer platform to:

automatically generate a network communication error report; and

automatically send the network communication error report after determining that a network communication error has occurred.

23. A method of error reporting in a video distribution network, the method comprising:

receiving at least one first automatically sent error report, the at least one first automatically sent error report associated with at least one first network communication error;

receiving at least one second automatically sent error report, the at least one second automatically sent error report associated with at least one second network communication error;

receiving at least one first user initiated error report, the at least one first user initiated error report associated with the at least one first network communication error; and

prioritizing the at least one first network communication error and the at least one second network communication error based on the at least one first automatically sent error report, the at least one second automatically sent error report, and the at least one first user initiated error report.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the at least one first network communication error is assigned a higher priority in response to receiving the at least one first user initiated error report.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein the at least one first user initiated error report comprises a plurality of user initiated error reports from a plurality of users, and wherein the at least one first network communication error and the at least one second network communication error are prioritized based on an aggregation of the plurality of user initiated error reports.