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System for controlling communications on a cable television network

  • US 4,684,980 A
  • Filed: 05/31/1984
  • Issued: 08/04/1987
  • Est. Priority Date: 05/31/1984
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. A cable television system for transmitting via a cable network television signals from a head end to a plurality of subscriber premises, and other signals between the head end and the plurality of subscriber premises, comprising:

  • polling signal means associated with the head end for applying polling signals including address data to the cable network;

    addressable external control unit means located at a plurality of remote locations, each location being adjacent but external to a subset of the subscriber premises, for receiving the television signals and the polling signals from the cable network;

    a plurality of drop cables connected to each external control unit means, each drop cable conducting a selected portion of the television signal from the external control unit means to a respective one of the subscriber premises associated with that external control unit means; and

    subscriber device means connected to each drop cable at the subscriber premises for allowing the subscriber to apply to the drop cable a control signal indicative of information to be transmitted to said external control unit means;

    wherein;

    said external control unit means includes control signal processing means to store the information indicated by the control signal;

    said external control unit means includes polling signal processing means for processing the received polling signals and for responding thereto by applying a response signal to the cable network for transmission to the head end;

    said external control unit means includes means for associating a level of importance with the information which the external control unit means has stored;

    said polling signal means includes means for applying to the cable network response threshold level signal data indicative of a predetermined level of importance of information; and

    said external control unit means includes means for receiving the response threshold level signal data and causing said polling signal processing means to respond to received polling signals addressed to said external control unit means if the level of importance of the information which said external control unit means has stored bears a predetermined relationship to the received response threshold level signal data.

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