FAVORITE GUI FOR TV

• US 20090204929A1
• Filed: 02/07/2008
• Published: 08/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Yeh, Sabrina Tai-Chen, Tu, Edgar Allan, Nishikawa, Yuko, Salisbury, John, Friedlander, Steven, Ho, Tracy, Baurmann, Travis Charles
• Granted Patent: US 8,151,215 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/836
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42646 for reading from or writing on a non-volatile solid state storage medium, e.g. DVD, CD-ROM
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4438 Window management, e.g. event handling following interaction with the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4781 Games

Abstract

A favorites GUI for a TV includes a carousel-type display of icons representing user-defined favorites that is overlaid on the current background video of the TV, with the center-most icon being the “current” icon and being enlarged relative to the other icons. Live video appears in icons representing TV channels. Other icons can represent, e.g., favorite photo/music files, favorite games from a game console, favorite content from an ambient player, etc.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a TV including a TV display; and

a processor associated with the TV for presenting on the TV display, in response to a command, a favorites graphics user interface (GUI), the GUI including;

a revolvable display of icons representing user-established favorite content sources, the icons being arranged in a horizontal row and being overlaid on a current TV image, a center-most icon on the display being enlarged relative to other icons on the display, live video appearing in at least one icon representing a respective TV channel, the live video being from the respective TV channel and being presented in three dimensional video.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one icon represents a multimedia folder or file from a media player in the system.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one icon represents a computer game from a game console in the system.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one icon represents a video associated with a video disk player in the system.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein a history list of recently viewed items is presentable in response to a user-generated signal, the history list being juxtaposed with the icons.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein a user can cause the GUI to revolve using an arrow key on a remote control device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein a user can cause the GUI to revolve using an arrow key on a remote control device until a desired icon is the center-most icon, the processor presenting content from the source associated with the center-most icon in response to a user selection of the center-most icon.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the processor automatically launches an application required to view content from the source associated with the center-most icon in response to a user selection of the center-most icon.

9. A TV system comprising:

at least one video display;

at least one processor presenting a favorites graphical user interface (GUI) having three dimensional icons, each icon being associated with a respective content source, at least one icon being established by live video from the source associated with the icon, metadata being presented with at least some of the icons, the metadata including a TV channel logo and a textual description of a program, the GUI also including information on a program in a future time slot for a source associated with a currently focused icon, wherein a user can manipulate a remote control to cause the icons to move across the video display until a desired icon is the currently focused icon, the currently focused icon being selectable by a user to cause content from the source associated with the currently focused icon to be displayed on substantially the entire display.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the icons are superimposed on a current video being displayed on the video display and revolve across the video in response to a user manipulation of the remote control.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the icons are displayed in one and only one row and the focused icon is enlarged relative to other icons on the display.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein at least one icon represents a multimedia folder or file from a media player in the system.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein at least one icon represents a computer game from a game console in the system.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein at least one icon represents a video associated with a video disk player in the system.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein a history list of recently viewed items is presentable in response to a user-generated signal, the history list being juxtaposed with the icons.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein a user can cause the GUI to revolve using an arrow key on a remote control device.

17. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor automatically launches an application required to view content from the source associated with the currently focused icon in response to a user selection of the currently focused icon.

18. A tangible computer readable medium embodying instructions executable by a processor for:

permitting a user of a TV to select favorites;

causing icons associated with respective favorites to appear on a TV display in response to a user command;

causing the icons to revolve in response to a user command; and

causing the TV to present a substantially full screen display of content from a source associated with a focused icon in response to a user command,

19. The medium of claim 18, wherein icons associated with TV channels include live three dimensional video feeds from the respective channels, the instructions including superimposing icons on a current video being displayed, the instructions including presenting icons in a single row of icons.

20. The medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions include presenting a history list of recently viewed items in response to a user-generated signal, the history list being juxtaposed with the icons.