LOCATION-BASED TUNER

• US 20120002115A1
• Filed: 06/30/2010
• Published: 01/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cable Television Laboratories Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Cable Television Laboratories Incorporated
• Inventors: Stevens, J. Clarke
• Granted Patent: US 8,856,837 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/731
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42202 environmental sensors, e.g. for detecting temperature, luminosity, pressure, earthquakes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/50 Tuning indicators; Automatic tuning control

Abstract

A method and system of facilitating tuning to content and/or signal streams, including capabilities to facilitate tuning when traveling from one geographical location to another where the different geographical areas may be rely on different identifiers to facilitate locating the content and/or signaling of interest.

Claims

1. A method for tuning to one of a plurality of television channels being used to transmit a live television program to different geographical areas, the method comprising:

identifying a geographical area of an output device associated with a recipient desiring to tune to the live television program according to geographical information collected from a positional locating system; and

instructing tuning of the output device to the one of the plurality of television channels being used to transmit the live television program to the identified geographical area.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising identifying at least two television channels being used within the identified geographical area to transmit the live television program and instructing tuning of the output device to the one of the at least two of the television channels having an associated codec operable with a codec of the output device.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising, in the event the codec of the at least two of the television channels are both operable with the codec of the output device, instructing tuning of the output device to the one of the at least two of the television channels having at least one of a lower cost and a higher quality.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising determining the lower cost as a function of a subscription associated with the recipient that specifies costs for tuning to each of the at least two of the television channels.

5. The method of claim 3 further comprising determining the lower cost as a function of an inquiry made to a provider of each of the at least two of the television channels.

6. The method of claim 3 further comprising determining the lower cost as a function of a transmission cost associated with carrying signaling over each of the at least two of the television channels between sources used to source each of the at least two television channels and the output device.

7. The method of claim 3 further comprising determining the higher quality as a function of quality associated with at least one of a transmission medium and a transmission protocol associated with carrying signaling over each of the at least two television channels.

8. The method of claim 2 further comprising, in the event the codec of the at least two of the television channels are both operable with the codec of the output device, instructing tuning of the output device to the one of the at least two of the television channels selected through a user interface displayed on the output device, the user interface listing each of the at least two of the television channels for selection.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising at least periodically re-evaluating the geographical information collected from the positional location system, and in the event the geographical area changes to a new geographical area, instructing tuning to a new one of the plurality of television channels being used to transmit the live television program to the new geographical area.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising identifying the live television program desired to be tuned to by the recipient as a function of recipient inputs to the output device.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising identifying the live television program as a function of user inputs that identify a title of the live television program.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising identifying the live television program as a function of user inputs that identify at least one of a channel name, a website name, and a network television name.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising the output device communicating information reflective of the user inputs remotely to a controller operable to identify the live television program as a function thereof.

14. The method of claim 10 further comprising the output device being operable to identify the live television program from the user inputs.

15. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining the geographical information at least based in part on communications conducted between the positional locating system and a portable positioning device that travels with the recipient and is not included as part of the output device.

16. The method of claim 1 further comprising determining the geographical information at least based on part on a known geographical area previously associated with to the output device.

17. A method of identifying channel numbers when different channel numbers are used in different geographical areas for the same channel names, the method comprising:

determining a geographical area of an output device as a function geographical information collected from a positional locating system;

determining a channel name requested to be output from the output device; and

automatically determining a channel number for the requested channel name from a database that cross-references the determined channel number with the determined geographical area.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising automatically determining a new channel number in the event additional geographical information indicates movement of the output device to a new geographical area.

19. A controller operable to:

identify a location of an output device from geographical information associated therewith;

identify a name of content to be accessed through the output device from user inputs made to the output device; and

instruct the output device to tune to one of a plurality of channels being used to transmit the content in different geographical areas according to the identified name of the content and the identified location of the output device.

20. The controller of claim 19 further being operable to instruct the output device to tune to a new one of the plurality of channels in the event the geographical information indicates the output to device to have moved to a new location, the new one of the plurality of channels being used to transmit the content to the new location.