METHOD FOR SEAMLESS UNICAST-BROADCAST SWITCHING DURING DASH-FORMATTED CONTENT STREAMING

• US 20140095668A1
• Filed: 06/27/2013
• Published: 04/03/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Oyman, Ozgur
• Application Number:
  US13/929,151
• Publication Number:
  US 20140095668A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/318 Received signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/00 Orthogonal multiplex systems, e.g. using WALSH codesH04J13/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 11/0086 Search parameters, e.g. search strategy, accumulation length, range of search, thresholds code acquisition in DSSS H04B1/7075
• CPC Class Codes: H04J 3/1694 Allocation of channels in TDM/TDMA networks, e.g. distributed multiplexers Passive Optical Networks H04Q11/0062
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1812 Hybrid protocols; Hybrid automatic repeat request [HARQ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1861 Physical mapping arrangements for ACK signaling see also H04L5/0053
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1864 ARQ related signaling H04L1/1607 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1893 Physical mapping arrangements physical resource mapping in general H04L5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/069 using logs of notifications; Post-processing of notifications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/5032 Generating service level reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/16 Threshold monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/001 the frequencies being arranged in component carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0035 Resource allocation in a cooperative multipoint environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0055 Physical resource allocation for ACK/NACK for physical mapping arrangements in ARQ protocols H04L1/1861
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0057 Physical resource allocation for CQI
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0073 Allocation arrangements that take into account other cell interferences for intercell interference mitigation or co-ordination in orthogonal multiplex systems H04J11/005
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0091 Signaling for the administration of the divided path
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/14 Two-way operation using the same type of signal, i.e. duplex
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/60 Network streaming of media packets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/65 : Network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 : at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 : in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/02 : Arrangements for optimising operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 : Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/10 : Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0205 : at the air interface dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0215 : based on user or device properties, e.g. MTC-capable devices services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC] H04W4/70; wireless resource selection or allocation plan definition based on terminal or device properties H04W72/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0221 : power availability or consumption
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0252 : per individual bearer or channel dynamic wireless traffic scheduling H04W72/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0268 : using specific QoS parameters for wireless networks, e.g. QoS class identifier [QCI] or guaranteed bit rate [GBR] negotiating SLA or negotiating QoS H04W28/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/16 : Central resource management; Negotiation of resources or communication parameters, e.g. negotiating bandwidth or QoS [Quality of Service]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0061 : of neighbour cell information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0066 : of control information between different types of networks in order to establish a new radio link in the target network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0083 : Determination of parameters used for hand-off, e.g. generation or modification of neighbour cell lists
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0085 : Hand-off measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/0088 : Scheduling hand-off measurements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 36/22 : for handling the traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 : Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/005 : Routing actions in the presence of nodes in sleep or doze mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/246 : Connectivity information discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/14 : using user query or user detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/16 : Discovering, processing access restriction or access information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/18 : Selecting a network or a communication service
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 : Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0209 : in terminal devices terminal devices per se H04W88/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0212 : managed by the network, e.g. network or access point is master and terminal is slave
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0225 : using monitoring of external events, e.g. the presence of a signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0235 : where the received signal is a power saving command
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0258 : controlling an operation mode according to history or models of usage information, e.g. activity schedule or time of day
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0261 : managing power supply demand, e.g. depending on battery level
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/04 : TPC
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/14 : Separate analysis of uplink or downlink
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 : Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/044 : based on the type of the allocated resource
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 : Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 : Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/21 : in the uplink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards the network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/23 : in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/30 : Resource management for broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/52 : based on load
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/541 : using the level of interference
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/002 : Transmission of channel access control information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/004 : in the uplink, i.e. towards network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/12 : Setup of transport tunnels
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/15 : Setup of multiple wireless link connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/16 : Involving different core network technologies, e.g. a packet-switched [PS] bearer in combination with a circuit-switched [CS] bearer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/23 : Manipulation of direct-mode connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/27 : Transitions between radio resource control [RRC] states
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/28 : Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/30 : Connection release
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 : Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/10 : adapted for application session management, e.g. SIP [Session Initiation Protocol] connection management H04W76/00; arrangements for session management H04L67/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/042 : Public Land Mobile systems, e.g. cellular systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 : WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 : Terminal devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 : adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/08 : Access point devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/12 : Access point controller devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/14 : Backbone network devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 : Gateway arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/18 : Service support devices; Network management devices
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A method for switching from a unicast based delivery to an evolved multimedia broadcast multicast services (eMBMS) based delivery of dynamic adaptive streaming over hyper-text transfer protocol (HTTP) (DASH) formatted content. The method can include inserting dedicated stream access points (SAPs) in media for switching between the unicast and eMBMS-based content delivery. The use of SAPs enables a DASH client to be able to seamlessly switch between unicast and broadcast delivery modes.

Claims

1. A method for inserting stream access points (SAP) into a plurality of encoded representations of an input media data context, the method comprising:

providing the input media data context to an encoder;

encoding said input media data context with said encoder to generate the plurality of encoded representations of the input media data context, wherein at least a portion of the input media data context is included in a first encoded representation of said plurality of encoded representations and the same portion is also included in a second encoded representation of said plurality of encoded representations, and said first encoded representation is encoded according to a different set of encoding parameters than is said second encoded representation;

segmenting the encoded representations of the input media data context into selected segment sizes for wireless transmission to a User Equipment (UE) as streaming data using dynamic adaptive streaming over hyper-text transfer protocol (HTTP) (DASH); and

inserting at least one stream access point (SAP) at a location in a segment of each encoded representation of the input media data context that enables the UE to switch between a unicast delivery of the streaming data and a multicast delivery of the streaming data at the SAP, wherein the location of the SAP is selected to enable the streaming data to be decoded at the UE after the switch using only information received after the SAP.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the SAP enables the UE to maintain playback of the input media data context after unicast-broadcast switching using initialization data contained in the segment to reduce discontinuities or playback interruptions caused by the unicast-broadcast switching.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein information on the location of the at least one SAP in the encoded representations is signaled to the UE prior to a transmission of the encoded representations.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the different encoded representations of the input media data context include encoding the data with different bitrates, frame rates, resolutions, or codec types.

5. The method of claim 3, the method further comprising dynamically generating and updating the location of the at least one SAP in media segments to be sent in a live presentation and signaling these updates to the UE prior to the transmission of the encoded representations.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the at least one SAP location of different encoded representations is selected to be at a same location relative to a selected video frame or a selected media time in each encoded representation.

7. The method of claim 1, the method further comprising storing the input media data context and the location information for the at least one SAP on a plurality of servers for transmission to the UE using DASH and using one of the unicast delivery and the multicast delivery.

8. A media server operable to provide a User Equipment (UE) with streaming multimedia content, the media server comprising:

an encoding module configured to receive an input media data context and encode said input media data context to generate a plurality of encoded representations of the input media data context, wherein at least a portion of the input media data context is included in a first encoded representation of said plurality of encoded representations and the same portion is also included in a second encoded representation of said plurality of encoded representations, and said first encoded representation is encoded according to a different set of encoding parameters than is said second encoded representation;

a segmenting module configured to segment the encoded representations of the input media data context into selected segment sizes for transmission to a User Equipment (UE) as streaming multimedia content; and

a stream access point (SAP) insertion module configured to insert at least one SAP at a location in a segment of each of the encoded representations of the input media data context that enables the UE to switch between a unicast delivery of the streaming multimedia content and a multicast delivery of the streaming multimedia content at the SAP, wherein the location of the SAP is selected to enable the streaming multimedia content to be decoded at the UE after the switch using only information received after the SAP.

9. The media server of claim 8, wherein the media server is further configured to provide the streaming multimedia content for transmission to a UE using one of a hyper-text transfer protocol (HTTP) server over a unicast connection and a file delivery over unidirectional transport (FLUTE) server over an evolved multimedia broadcast and multicast services (eMBMS) connection with at least one evolved Node B (eNodeB).

10. The media server of claim 8, wherein the media server is further configured to provide a first segment of the multimedia content for transmission to a UE using a unicast connection and a second segment of the multimedia content using an evolved multimedia broadcast and multicast services (eMBMS) connection.

11. The media server of claim 8, wherein the media server is further configured to provide different encoded representations of the input media data context for transmission over different file delivery over unidirectional transport (FLUTE) sessions with at least one SAP provided at a location in a segment of each of the encoded representations of the input media data context.

12. The media server of claim 8, wherein the media server is further configured to provide a first segment of the multimedia content over unicast via a hyper-text transfer protocol (HTTP) server and to provide a second segment of the multimedia content over an evolved multimedia broadcast and multicast services (eMBMS) connection via a broadcast multicast service center (BMSC) server.

13. The media server of claim 12, wherein the media server is further configured to sequence the transmission of the segments based on MBMS sequencing data.

14. The media server of claim 12, wherein the media server is further configured to stop providing the first segment of the multimedia content over the unicast session at a unicast-MBMS synchronization SAP.

15. A User Equipment (UE) operable to receive streaming media in a dynamic adaptive streaming over hyper-text transfer protocol (HTTP) (DASH) format comprising:

a DASH client operating on the UE that is configured to;

request the streaming data in segments from a DASH content server;

receive the segments from the DASH content server via one of a unicast connection and an evolved multimedia broadcast and multicast services (eMBMS) connection with at least one evolved Node B (eNodeB); and

request a change between the unicast connection and the eMBMS connection at a stream access point (SAP) of the streaming media.

16. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to:

receive synchronization information from the DASH content server; and

determine at which SAP to change from the unicast session to the eMBMS session based on the synchronization information.

17. The UE of claim 16, wherein the synchronization data contains at least one unicast-eMBMS synchronization SAP received in a DASH Media Presentation Description (MPD) to provide a synchronized point in the streaming media between the unicast connection and the eMBMS connection to maintain continuous playback of media.

18. The UE of claim 15, wherein the SAP in the streaming media occurs at a border between two segments received from the DASH content server.

19. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to perform a unicast-to-broadcast switch to and receive a plurality of segments from multiple file delivery over unidirectional transport (FLUTE) sessions over the eMBMS connection.

20. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to receive at least one component of the streaming media from the unicast connection and at least one component of the streaming media from the eMBMS connection.

21. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to receive a plurality of segments over multiple file delivery over unidirectional transport (FLUTE) sessions via the eMBMS connection based on eMBMS sequencing data.

22. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to receive the segments from a plurality of alternating eMBMS sessions.

23. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to seamlessly receive a first segment from the unicast connection and a second segment from the eMBMS connection.

24. The UE of claim 23, wherein the DASH client is further configured to playback a first segment from the unicast connection and a second segment from the eMBMS connection while providing continuity for the user.

25. The UE of claim 15, wherein the DASH client is further configured to receive eMBMS sequencing data and change between a plurality of eMBMS connections based on the eMBMS sequencing data.

26. The UE of claim 15, wherein each SAP in the streaming media is dynamically generated and communicated to the UE to provide updated SAP locations so that the UE can request the change between the unicast connection and the eMBMS connection at a location of the SAP at future media segment receptions based on the updated SAP locations.