SYSTEM FOR AND METHOD OF DISTRIBUTING TELEVISION, VIDEO AND OTHER SIGNALS

• US 20120066723A1
• Filed: 09/13/2011
• Published: 03/15/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Adam J. Garstone, Colin D. Plimmer, Ian L. Jamieson, Julian B. Fisk, Kaushik Kotak, Terry A. Austin
• Original Assignee: Adam J. Garstone, Colin D. Plimmer, Ian L. Jamieson, Julian B. Fisk, Kaushik Kotak, Terry A. Austin
• Inventors: FISK, Julian B., KOTAK, Kaushik, GARSTONE, Adam J., JAMIESON, Ian L., AUSTIN, Terry A., PLIMMER, Colin D.
• Application Number:
  US13/231,542
• Publication Number:
  US 20120066723A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 725/63
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/00 Arrangements for maintenance, administration or management of data switching networks, e.g. of packet switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/0213 Standardised network management protocols, e.g. simple network management protocol [SNMP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/2596 Translation of addresses of the same type other than IP, e.g. translation from MAC to MAC addresses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/5014 using dynamic host configuration protocol [DHCP] or bootstrap protocol [BOOTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0272 Virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/56 Provisioning of proxy services store-and-forward switching systems in data switching networks H04L12/54
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2143 located in a single building, e.g. hotel, hospital or museum arrangements specially adapted for plural spots in a confined site in broadcast systems H04H20/63; adaptations for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution in television systems H04N7/106
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2221 being a cable television head-end CATV in broadcast systems H04H20/78
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 : being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4333 : Processing operations in response to a pause request
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 : Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• 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 21/4437 : Implementing a Virtual Machine [VM] virtual machines in general G06F9/45533
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 : for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4782 : Web browsing , e.g. WebTV
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6402 : Address allocation for clients address allocation in data networks H04L61/50
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6408 : Unicasting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 : Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 : End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 : using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/106 : for domestic distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/108 : the cable being constituted by a pair of wires
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17354 : in an intermediate station common to a plurality of user terminals

Abstract

A system for distributing television/video signals to different locations comprises a server capable of providing digital television/video signals for a plurality of programmes, a plurality of receivers each at a respective one of said locations, and a network connecting the server to the receivers, each receiver being operable to select a required one of the programmes and to communicate the selection to the server, the server being responsive to such a selection to transmit the digital television/video signal for the selected programme over the network addressed to the receiver that selected that programme, and each receiver being responsive to the digital television/video signal that is addressed to that receiver so that point-to-point communication is established from the server to that receiver.

Claims

1. A system for delivering audio/visual data to rooms in hotels, comprising:

a server for receiving and storing audio/visual data over a satellite link;

a network;

a plurality of local control units, one in each room, connected to the server by the network and including a connection for connecting an external computer to the network and for controlling communication with the external computer;

a display device connected to each local control unit in each room;

wherein the local control unit receives stored audio/visual data from the server over the network and directs is to the display device and directs IP packets to and from the external computer, when connected.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server provides audio/visual data to the network in the form of MPEG data and each local control unit includes an MPEG decoder that allows the audio/visual data to be displayed on the display device.

3. A system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a receiver for receiving terrestrial broadcast audio/visual data and an encoder for encoding the terrestrial broadcast data into MEPG format;

wherein the server receives encoded terrestrial broadcast data and directs it to the local control units over the network.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server and the local control unit are configured to establish point-to-point communication over the network.

5. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit acts as a gateway for communication with a connected external computer.

6. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit is configured to receive a request from a connected external computer and to supply the address of the local control unit in response.

7. A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the local control unit is configures to receive a request selected from the group consisting of the address of a DNS server, and the address of a gateway server.

8. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit is configured to assign an address to a connected external computer.

9. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the local control unit is configured to assign the address dynamically.

10. A system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the local control unit comprises a DHCP client for assigning the address.

11. A system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the local control unit is responsive to a signal transmitted over the network from the server to establish IP point-to-point communication.

12. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit is configured to control communication between the server and the display device.

13. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is configured to distribute a first set of data and a second set of data to the local control unit, wherein portions of the first set of data are interleaved with portions of the second set of data.

14. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit is configured to simultaneously receive audio/visual data and control communication with a connected external computer.

15. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the server is configured to transmit data in response to a request received from a local control unit.

16. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the request originates with a connected external computer.

17. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the request is generated by a user.

18. A system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the server is configured to compare the request with control criteria and distribute data in accordance with the control criteria.

19. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the local control unit comprises a real-time operating system for controlling streaming video.

20. A system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the real-time operating system includes a proxy IP server for mapping an IP address of a connected computer to an IP address of the local control unit.

21. A system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the real-time operating system includes an NFS client to allow the local control unit to connect to a network file system via the server.