Satellite Receiver Having Bluetooth or Other Short-Range Wireless Interface

• US 20080167031A1
• Filed: 01/04/2007
• Published: 07/10/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Instrument Corporation (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: General Instrument Corporation (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Inventors: Meek, Jerry L., Sorber, Russell E., Swim, Bradley R.
• Application Number:
  US11/619,762
• Publication Number:
  US 20080167031A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/426.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18523 Satellite systems for providing broadcast service to terrestrial stations, i.e. broadcast satellite service arrangements specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving H04H40/90; picture transmission via satellite H04N1/00103; television transmission via satellite H04N7/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 2201/30 characterised by the use of a return channel, e.g. for collecting users' opinions, for returning broadcast space/time information or for requesting data
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 2201/33 via the broadcast channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/90 specially adapted for satellite broadcast receiving
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/90 Wireless transmission systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43637 involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11] arrangements for wireless networking or broadcasting of information in indoor or near-field type systems H04B10/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6143 involving transmission via a satellite

Abstract

A subscriber satellite broadcast receiver is provided. The receiver includes a tuner/demodulator for transforming satellite broadcast signals to a digital data stream, a decoder for decoding the digital data stream into a format suitable for display on a display device and a processor operatively coupled to the tuner/demodulator and the decoder. A short-range wireless transceiver is coupled to the processor for establishing a connection with a satellite broadcast service provider.

Claims

1. At least one computer-readable medium encoded with instructions which, when executed by a processor, performs a method including:

establishing communication with a satellite broadcast service provider over a cellular network using a short-range wireless connection that operates over a personal area network;

transmitting a service request to the satellite broadcast service provider over the personal area network and the cellular network; and

receiving the requested service from a satellite associated with the satellite broadcast service provider.

2. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the short-range wireless connection is a Bluetooth connection.

3. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 wherein the service request is transmitted in a format that conforms to a short-range wireless protocol employed by the personal area network and communicated over the cellular network as an SMS, MMS or EMS message.

4. The computer-readable medium of claim 1 further comprising receiving control instructions associated with the service request over the cellular network and the personal area network.

5. The computer-readable medium of claim 4 wherein the control instructions are communicated over the cellular network as an SMS message and received in a format that conforms to a short-range wireless protocol employed by the personal area network.

6. A subscriber satellite broadcast receiver, comprising:

a tuner/demodulator for transforming satellite broadcast signals to a digital data stream;

a decoder for decoding the digital data stream into a format suitable for display on a display device;

a processor operatively coupled to the tuner/demodulator and the decoder; and

a short-range wireless transceiver coupled to the processor for establishing a connection with a satellite broadcast service provider.

7. The receiver of claim 6 wherein the short-range wireless transceiver is a Bluetooth transceiver.

8. The receiver of claim 6 wherein the short-range wireless transceiver is configured to be operable with an RF technique selected from the group consisting of code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency-division multiplexing (FDM), spread-spectrum, global system for mobile communications (GSM), high-speed circuit-switched data (HCSD), general packet radio system (GPRS), enhanced data GSM environment (EDGE), universal mobile telecommunications service (UMTS), IEEE 802.11 protocol and IEEE 802.16 protocol.

9. The receiver of claim 6 wherein the processor is responsive to control instructions received by the transceiver from the satellite service provider.

10. At least one computer-readable medium encoded with instructions which, when executed by a processor, performs a method including:

receiving from a satellite subscriber a service request that traverses a personal area network and a cellular network;

in response to the request, transmitting confirmation of the service request to the subscriber over the cellular network; and

causing the requested service to be transmitted to the satellite subscriber from a satellite.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 further comprising transmitting a confirmation of the service request to the satellite subscriber over the cellular network and the personal area network.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 11 further comprising transmitting a confirmation of the service request from the satellite subscriber over the Internet.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the personal area network is a Bluetooth network.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 wherein the service request is received in a format that conforms to a short-range wireless protocol employed by the personal area network and communicated over the cellular network as an SMS, MMS or EMS message.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 11 wherein the confirmation of the service request is transmitted as an SMS, EMS or MMS message.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 10 further comprising transmitting control instructions associated with the service request over the cellular network and the personal area network.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15 wherein the control instructions are transmitted as an SMS message.