Merging of video mosaic with teletext

• US 5,781,245 A
• Filed: 01/31/1996
• Issued: 07/14/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: TP Vision Holding BV (TPV Technology Co., Ltd. (f/k/a Nanjing Huadong Electronics Information & Technology))
• Original Assignee: US Philips Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Everett, Timothy J., Van Der Weij, Hendrikus H. M., Kettler, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Powell, Mark R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): House, Ronald D.
• Application Number:
  US08/597,439
• Time in Patent Office: 895 Days
• Field of Search: 348/463, 348/465, 348/468, 348/473, 348/563, 348/564, 348/589
• US Class Current: 725/105
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/445 for displaying additional information H04N5/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0255 Display systems therefor
• 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

Abstract

Video data and TXT data are combined into a single image. The video data is representative of a mosaic of video windows. The TXT data form a plurality of TXT pages. Each TXT page is transparent in an area of one or more corresponding video windows. In an interactive application, a customized TXT page guides a user through a virtual world in video and TXT combined.

Claims

1. A method of enabling combining video data and teletext data supplied via a transmission channel, the method including:

providing the teletext data representative of a plurality of teletext pages;

providing the video data representative of a synthesized image composed of a plurality of video windows;

enabling selectively combining a respective one of the teletext pages with the synthesized image so as to render visible a respective one of the video windows;

running an application on a server to generate the video data and the teletext data;

enabling at least one user to determine a content of at least the video data or the teletext data by interaction with the application via a further transmission channel to the server.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

enabling a plurality of users to interact with the application;

providing in at least one of the video windows a status of the plurality of users with respect to the application.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the further transmission channel comprises a telephone line.

4. The method of claim 2,

wherein a plurality of users are enabled to interact with the application;

and

the method further comprises the step of enabling the users to communicate with one another via the further transmission channel.