Apparatus And Methods For Recording Adjacent Time Slots Of Television Programming On The Same Channel

• US 20100247067A1
• Filed: 03/26/2009
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Network LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Dish Network LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Gratton, Max Stephen
• Granted Patent: US 9,154,721 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/291
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4325 by playing back content from the storage medium reproduction of recorded television signals H04N5/76; reproduction of recorded television signals H04N9/79
• 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 21/4583 Automatically resolving scheduling conflicts, e.g. when a recording by reservation has been programmed for two programs in the same time slot
• 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 21/8455 involving pointers to the content, e.g. pointers to the I-frames of the video stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums

Abstract

Various embodiments described herein provide techniques for a DVR to utilize the same data stream to record multiple events with adjacent time slots simultaneously. A DVR is configured to recognize when two recording timers for programs on the same channel overlap. Content for each program may be stored in separate event files on the DVR or the content in one event file may be linked with the content in another event file. Thus, overlapping content may be accessed through either of the event files.

Claims

1. A method for recording multiple television programs, the method comprising:

identifying a first recording timer on a digital video recorder, the first recording timer associated with a channel and having a first beginning time and a first ending time;

identifying a second recording timer on the digital video recorder, the second recording timer associated with the channel and having a second beginning time and a second ending time, the second beginning time occurring temporally before the first ending time and the second beginning time occurring temporally after the first ending time;

receiving a video stream using a tuner of the digital video recorder;

recording the video stream between the first beginning time and the first ending time into a first file; and

recording the video stream between the second beginning time and the second ending time into a second file.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first recording timer is associated with a first television program broadcast during a first time slot, wherein the first ending time occurs after an ending of the first time slot and wherein the second recording timer is associated with a second television program, broadcast during a second time slot, wherein the second beginning time occurs before a start of the second time slot.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein recording the video stream to the first file and recording the video stream to the second file further comprise:

recording the video stream between the first beginning time and the first ending time into the first file;

recording the video stream between the first ending time and the second ending time into the second file; and

copying a portion of the first file, corresponding with the video stream between the second beginning time and the first ending time, to the second file after the second ending time.

4. A method for recording multiple television programs, the method comprising:

identifying a first recording timer on a digital video recorder, the first recording timer associated with a channel and having a first beginning time and a first ending time;

identifying a second recording timer on the digital video recorder, the second recording timer associated with the channel and having a second beginning time and a second ending time, the second beginning time occurring temporally before the first ending time and the second ending time occurring temporally after the first ending time;

identifying a temporal overlap between the second beginning time and the second ending time;

identifying a dividing time within the temporal overlap;

receiving a video stream using a tuner of the digital video recorder;

recording the video stream between the first beginning time and the dividing time into a first file;

recording the video stream between the dividing time and the second ending time into a second file; and

associating a first portion of the first file, corresponding with the first beginning time and the dividing time, with the second file.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the first recording timer is associated with a first television program broadcast during a first time slot, wherein the first ending time occurs after an ending of the first time slot and wherein the second recording timer is associated with a second television program, broadcast during a second time slot, wherein the second beginning time occurs before a start of the second time slot.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the dividing time corresponds with the ending of the first time slot.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

associating a first portion of the second file corresponding with the dividing time and the ending time with the second file.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

receiving input requesting playback of a television program associated with the second file;

outputting first video content corresponding with the first portion of the first file from the digital video recorder responsive to the input; and

outputting second video content corresponding with the second file from the digital video recorder after completing the output of the first video content.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein the dividing time corresponds with the first ending time.

10. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving input requesting to delete the first file;

determining whether the second file has been deleted; and

deleting a second portion of the first file responsive to determining that the second file has not been deleted, wherein the first portion of the first file is retained on the digital video recorder until the second file is deleted.

11. The method of claim 4, wherein associating the portion of the first file further comprises:

generating a pointer, to the first portion of the first file, in the second file, the pointer specifying playback of the first portion of the first file prior to playback of the video content of the second file.

12. A digital video recorder comprising:

a storage medium;

a communication interface operable to receive a video stream associated with a channel;

control logic communicatively coupled to the storage medium and the communication interface, the control logic operable to;

identify a first recording timer associated with the channel and having a first beginning time and a first ending time;

identify a second recording timer associated with the channel and having a second beginning time and a second ending time, the second beginning time occurring temporally before the first ending time and the second ending time occurring temporally after the first ending time;

record the video stream into a first file of the storage medium between the first beginning time and the first ending time; and

record the video stream into a second file of the storage medium between the second beginning time and the second ending time.

13. The digital video recorder of claim 12, wherein the first recording timer is associated with a first television program broadcast during a first time slot, wherein the first ending time occurs after an ending of the first time slot and wherein the second recording timer is associated with a second television program, broadcast during a second time slot, wherein the second beginning time occurs before a start of the second time slot.

14. The digital video recorder of claim 12, wherein the control logic is further operable to:

record the video stream between the first beginning time and the first ending time into the first file;

record the video stream between the first ending time and the second ending time into the second file; and

copy a portion of the first file, corresponding with the video stream between the second beginning time and the first ending time, to the second file after second ending time.

15. A digital video recorder comprising:

a storage medium;

a communication interface operable to receive a video stream associated with a channel;

control logic communicatively coupled to the storage medium and the communication interface, the control logic operable to;

identify a first recording timer associated with the channel and having a first beginning time and a first ending time;

identify a second recording timer associated with the channel and having a second beginning time and a second ending time, the second beginning time occurring temporally before the first ending time and the second ending time occurring temporally after the first ending time;

identify a temporal overlap between the second beginning time and the second ending time;

identify a dividing time within the temporal overlap;

record the video stream between the first beginning time and the dividing time into a first file;

record the video stream between the dividing time and the second ending time into a second file; and

associate a first portion of the first file, corresponding with the temporal overlap of the first and second recording timers, with the second file.

16. The digital video recorder of claim 15I wherein the control logic is further operable to:

receive input requesting playback of a television program associated with the second file;

output first video content corresponding with the first portion of the first file from the digital video recorder responsive to the input; and

output second video content corresponding with the second file from the digital video recorder after completing the output of the first video content.

17. The digital video recorder of claim 15, wherein the dividing time corresponds with the ending of the first time slot.

18. The digital video recorder of claim 17, wherein the control logic is further operable to associate a first portion of the second file, corresponding with the dividing time and the ending time, with the second file.

19. The digital video recorder of claim 15, wherein the control logic is further operable to:

receive input requesting to delete the first file;

determine whether the second file has been deleted; and

delete a second portion of the first file responsive to determining that the second file has not been deleted, wherein the first portion of the first file is retained on the digital video recorder until the second file is deleted.

20. The digital video recorder of claim 15, wherein the control logic is further operable to:

generate a pointer to the first portion of the first file in the second file, the pointer specifying playback of the portion of the first file prior to playback of the video content of the second file.

21. The digital video recorder of claim of claim 15, wherein the dividing time corresponds with the first ending time.