Transaction based interactive television system

• US 5,526,035 A
• Filed: 06/01/1994
• Issued: 06/11/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 11/20/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: Zing Systems, L.P.
• Inventors: Lappington, John P., Marshall, Susan K.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harvey, David E.
• Application Number:
  US08/252,942
• Time in Patent Office: 741 Days
• US Class Current: 725/136
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/338 using television networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/401 Secure communication, e.g. using encryption or authentication
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/403 Connection between platform and handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/409 Data transfer via television network
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/532 using secure communication, e.g. by encryption, authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/06 of the multiple-choice answer-type, i.e. where a given question is provided with a series of answers and a choice has to be made from the answers
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/31 using in-band signals, e.g. subsonic or cue signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/38 Arrangements for distribution where lower stations, e.g. receivers, interact with the broadcast
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43637 involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11] arrangements for wireless networking or broadcasting of information in indoor or near-field type systems H04B10/114
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4722 for requesting additional data associated with the content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/854 Content authoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8545 for generating interactive applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 the inserted signal being digital
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0882 : for the transmission of character code signals, e.g. for teletext circuits for the digital non-picture data signal H04N7/035
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0888 : Subscription systems therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/141 : between two video terminals, e.g. videophone telephonic communication systems combined with television receiver for reception of entertainment or information matter H04M11/085
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 : by receiver means only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 : Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

An interactive television system where interactive information is inserted in the vertical blanking interval of a standard television signal. The signal is received and decoded by a settop decoder which sends the decoded signal via an infrared signal to a handheld device. The viewer using the handheld device can interact with a game, sports, or educational event or other presentation on the television. The system includes a proprietary high level command language and programmer (PIU) tables which are maintained in the memory of the handheld device. The PIU tables store the transactions of the various events presented on the television. The transactions are sent from the insertion system to the decoder throughout the broadcast of the television program. Thus, for a sports event with interleaved commercials, one or more of the PIU tables would be used to store a collection of transactions used for the main event and one or more additional PIU tables are used for storing transactions for each of the interleaved commercials. This system allows a viewer to enter and exit any event at any time without having to wait for information to be downloaded and without losing any scores. Further, the system allows the user to change from event to event such as, for example, by tuning to different stations and be able to immediately interact and have responses scored and stored.

Claims

1. An interactive presentation system comprising:

a receiver adapted to receive a plurality of units of interactive event specific data throughout a presentation of a first event, said first event having a plurality of aspects which make up said first event, each of said units of interactive event specific data being associated with one of said aspects, said units of said interactive data being received immediately before or during said associated aspect of said first event such that said interactive system need only receive said interactive event specific data associated with said associated aspect in order to allow a participant to interact with said associated aspect;

a processor, in communication with said receiver, said processor adapted to present a transaction, said transaction based on said interactive event specific data and capable of having a result;

a memory adapted to store at least a subset of said event specific data and said result of said transaction, said memory including a plurality of transaction structures, each transaction structure including an identification number, a particular one of said transaction structures is updated because of said transaction if said interactive event specific data includes a reference to said identification number of said particular transaction structure; and

a participant input device, in communication with said processor.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said memory is adapted to store a cumulative score generated by said processor, said cumulative score representing an accumulation of results of a plurality of transactions during said first event.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said participant input device includes a display and a keyboard adapted to allow said participant to input a response.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said memory includes means for allowing said first event and said one or more aspects within said first event to be interleaved with at least a second event and any aspects within said second event while allowing said participant to interact with any of said aspects of said first and second events.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said interactive event specific data is encoded in a television signal; and

said receiver includes means for reading said interactive event specific data from said television signal.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein:

said receiver receives said interactive event specific data transparently to said participant.

7. An interactive presentation system comprising:

a receiver adapted to receive interactive data, said interactive data includes a first set of commands and first event specific data associated with a first television program broadcast on a first television channel and a second set of commands and second event specific data associated with a second television program broadcast on a second television channel;

a memory including a plurality of transaction structures, said memory being adapted to store data in said transaction structures in response to said interactive data, said plurality of transaction structures including a first transaction structure and a second transaction structure; and

a processor, in response to said interactive data, adapted to present transactions having results such that when said receiver receives said first event specific data said transactions presented are in association with said first event specific data and results of said transactions are used to update a first transaction structure and said second transaction structure is not updated, and when said receiver receives said second event specific data said transactions presented are in association with said second event specific data and results of said transaction are used to update a second transaction structure and said first transaction structure is not updated.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein:

said interactive data is transmitted within a television signal, and

said receiver reads said interactive data from said television signal.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein:

said processor generates a first cumulative score based on said transactions presented in association with said first event and a second cumulative score based on said transactions presented in association with said second event;

said first transaction structure stores said first cumulative score; and

said second transaction structure stores said second cumulative score.

10. A system according to claim 7, wherein:

said first event and said second event are broadcast at overlapping times.

28. The system according to claim 7 wherein:

said first event and said second are broadcast at different times.

11. A method for receiving and presenting interactive programs on an interactive system, said interactive system including a memory unit, said memory unit including a first transaction structure having a first identification code and a second transaction structure having a second identification code different from said first identification code, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) receiving first interactive data associated with a first event, said first interactive data including commands and event specific data, said first interactive data including a reference to said first identification code, said first interactive data including a plurality of aspects, each aspect being self contained so that a transaction may be presented based on one aspect of said first interactive data without relying on a previous-in-time aspect of said first interactive data;

(b) presenting a participant with a transaction based on one aspect of said first interactive data without updating said second transaction structure;

(c) updating said first transaction structure based on step (b) without updating said second transaction structure;

(d) receiving second interactive data associated with a second event, said second interactive data including commands and event specific data, said second interactive data including a reference to said second identification code, said second interactive data including a plurality of aspects, each aspect being self contained so that a transaction may be presented based on one aspect of said second interactive data without relying on a previous-in-time aspect of said second interactive data;

(e) presenting said participant with a transaction based on one aspect of said second interactive data without updating said first transaction structure; and

(f) updating said second transaction structure based on step (e) without updating said first transaction structure.

12. A method according to claim 11, further including the steps of:

presenting said participant with a plurality of transactions based on said second interactive data without updating said first transaction structure;

presenting said participant with a plurality of transactions based on said first interactive data without updating said second transaction structure;

interleaving said transactions based on said first interactive data with transactions based on said second interactive data.

13. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first interactive data is received on a first channel and said second interactive data is received on a second channel.

14. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first interactive data is received on a first channel and said second interactive data is received on said first channel.

15. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first interactive data is received at a first time and said second interactive data is received at a second time.

16. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first interactive data and said second interactive data are received at least in part concurrently.

17. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first interactive data and said second interactive data are received during overlapping time periods.

18. A method according to claim 11, wherein said first event and said second event occur during overlapping time periods.

19. A method for making an interactive program to be presented on a selectively tuneable television monitor, comprising the steps of:

constructing interactive data which is relevant to a plurality of aspects which when taken together comprise a first event of an interactive video presentation such that said interactive data is self-contained and does not rely on interactive data for previous-in-time aspects of said first event; and

sending said interactive data synchronized with said plurality of aspects such that said interactive data for any one of said plurality of aspects is received immediately before or during a presentation of said any one aspect so that a participant need not be tuned to said first event from said beginning of said first event in order to interact with said any one aspect, said interactive data being transparent to said participant;

constructing interactive data which is relevant to each of a plurality of aspects which when taken together comprise a second event such that said interactive data relevant to said each aspect of said second event is self-contained and does not rely on said interactive data for a previous-in-time aspect of said second event; and

interleaving at least one of said aspects of said second event with said any one aspects of said first event in order to make said presentation to said participant, such that said participant need not be tuned to either said first or said second events from said beginning of either said first or said second events in order to interact with said any one aspect of said first event or said one aspect of said second event.

29. The method of claim 19 further including the steps of:

sending said interactive data for said first event to a first channel; and

sending said interactive data for said second event to a second channel.

30. The method of claim 19 further including the steps of:

sending said interactive data for said first event to a first channel; and

sending said interactive data for said second event to said first channel.

31. The method of claim 19 further including the steps of:

sending said interactive data for at least one aspect of said first event at a different time than said interactive data for at least one aspect of said second event.

32. The method of claim 19 further including the steps of:

sending said interactive data for at least one aspect of said first event at the same time as said interactive data for at least one aspect of said second event.

20. A method of broadcasting an interactive program to be presented on a selectively tuneable television monitor, comprising the steps of:

broadcasting a first event, said first event having a first plurality of aspects including a first aspect and a second aspect;

broadcasting a second event, said second event including a second plurality of aspects;

transmitting first interactive data which is relevant to said first aspect of said first event, said first interactive data is self-contained and does not rely on interactive data for previous-in-time aspects of said first event, said transmission of first interactive data synchronized with said broadcast of said first aspect of said first event such that said first interactive data is received immediately before or during said presentation of said first aspect so that said participant need not be tuned to said previous-in-time aspects of said first event in order to interact with said first aspect;

transmitting second interactive data which is relevant to said second aspect of said first event, said second interactive data is self-contained and does not rely on interactive data for previous-in-time aspects of said first event, said transmission of second interactive data synchronized with said broadcast of said second aspect of said first event such that said second interactive data is received immediately before or during said presentation of said second aspect so that said participant need not be tuned to said previous-in-time aspects of said first event in order to interact with said first aspect;

transmitting third interactive data which is relevant to one aspect of said second plurality of aspects, said third interactive data is self-contained and does not rely on interactive data for previous-in-time aspects of said second event, said transmission of said third interactive data synchronized with said broadcast of said one aspect of said second event such that said third interactive data is received immediately before or during said presentation of said one aspect of said second event so that said participant need not be tuned to said previous-in-time aspects of said second event in order to interact with said one aspect;

wherein said one aspect of said second event occurs after said first aspect of said first event and before said second aspect of said first event, said participant being able to interact with said first aspect of said first event, said second aspect of said first event and said one aspect of said second event.

21. A method of broadcasting an interactive presentation according to claim 20, wherein:

said first event and said second event are on different channels.

22. A method of broadcasting an interactive presentation according to claim 20, wherein:

said first event and said second event are on a same channel.

23. A method of broadcasting an interactive presentation according to claim 20, wherein:

said first event and said second event occur during overlapping time intervals.

24. An interactive television system, comprising:

a receiver adapted to receive interactive data, said interactive data including first data and second data;

a processor adapted to present transactions based on said interactive data;

a memory, in communication with said processor, said memory including a plurality of programmer tables, said programmer tables include a location to store an identification number and a score, said plurality of programmer tables including a first programmer table having a first identification number and a second programmer table having a second identification number, said first data including said first identification number, said second data including said second identification number, said first programmer table being updated when said processor processes said first data, said second programmer table not being updated when said processor processes said first programmer table, said second programmer table being updated when said processor processes said second data, said first programmer table not being updated when said processor processes said second data.

25. An interactive television system to be used while viewing a television, said television capable of presenting at least one of a plurality of programs, said plurality of programs being broadcasted concurrently or disposed in time, each of said plurality of programs including interactive data having a programmer table ID, said system comprising:

a receiver adapted to receive said interactive data of said presented program;

a processor adapted to present transactions based on said received interactive data;

a memory, in communication with said processor, said memory including a plurality of programmer tables, said programmer tables include an identification number and a location for storing a score, a particular programmer table being updated when said processor is presenting transactions based on interactive data which includes a programmer ID that matches said identification number of said particular programmer table.

26. An interactive television system according to claim 25, further including a participant input device in communication with said processor.

27. An interactive television system according to claim 25, wherein said receiver receives said interactive data transparently to a participant.