Distribution of satellite television programs to passengers in an aircraft when it is out of range of the satellites
First Claim
1. A satellite television system that distributes television programs to passengers on an aircraft derived from direct broadcast satellites, said system comprising:
- an antenna that comprises steering means for steering the antenna toward the satellites in response to control signals supplied thereto;
antenna control means for providing the control signals to the antenna and for processing status signals derived from the antenna to steer the antenna so that it is locked onto encoded RF signals transmitted by the satellite, and for downconverting the encoded RF signals to provide encoded left hand and right hand circularly polarized RF signals that correspond to a plurality of encoded television channels;
a receiver coupled to the antenna control means for processing the downconverted encoded RF signals to provide encoded video and audio output signals corresponding to at least one television channel;
a storage medium coupled to the receiver for storing the encoded video and audio signals;
a modulator coupled to the receiver for selectively modulating the downconverted encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is within a coverage area of the satellites, and the stored encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is outside the coverage area of the satellites; and
a video and audio distribution system coupled to the modulator for distributing the modulated and encoded video and audio signals for viewing by the passengers.
14 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Systems that distribute live television programs to passengers of an aircraft by way of satellites of a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) system when the aircraft is in range of the satellites and distributes time-delayed television programs when the aircraft is out of range of the satellites. The present invention provides for real-time reception and storage of live television programs in a storage medium (in compressed digital format) and presentation to passengers during that time when the aircraft is within the coverage area of satellites. The stored programming is distributed to the passengers later in the flight, when the aircraft is out of range of the satellites. The stored programming includes all channels transmitted by the satellites. Thus, a large number of programs are made available to the passengers on a time-delay basis. A low-cost system is disclosed that distributes a single television channel to overhead monitors and headphones. A method of providing delayed distribution of television programs from satellites of a direct broadcast satellite system to passengers on an aircraft is also disclosed.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A satellite television system that distributes television programs to passengers on an aircraft derived from direct broadcast satellites, said system comprising:
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an antenna that comprises steering means for steering the antenna toward the satellites in response to control signals supplied thereto; antenna control means for providing the control signals to the antenna and for processing status signals derived from the antenna to steer the antenna so that it is locked onto encoded RF signals transmitted by the satellite, and for downconverting the encoded RF signals to provide encoded left hand and right hand circularly polarized RF signals that correspond to a plurality of encoded television channels; a receiver coupled to the antenna control means for processing the downconverted encoded RF signals to provide encoded video and audio output signals corresponding to at least one television channel; a storage medium coupled to the receiver for storing the encoded video and audio signals; a modulator coupled to the receiver for selectively modulating the downconverted encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is within a coverage area of the satellites, and the stored encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is outside the coverage area of the satellites; and a video and audio distribution system coupled to the modulator for distributing the modulated and encoded video and audio signals for viewing by the passengers. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A satellite television system that distributes television programs to passengers on an aircraft derived from direct broadcast satellites, said system comprising:
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an antenna that comprises steering means for steering the antenna toward the satellite in response to control signals supplied thereto; antenna control means for providing the control signals to the antenna and for processing status signals derived from the antenna to steer the antenna so that it is locked onto encoded RF signals transmitted by the satellite, and for downconverting the encoded RF signals to provide encoded left hand and right hand circularly polarized RF signals that correspond to a plurality of encoded television channels; a receiver coupled to the antenna control means for processing the downconverted encoded RF signals to provide encoded video and audio output signals corresponding to the plurality of television channels, and for feeding back the status signals to the antenna control means which are used to steer the antenna to lock it onto the RF signals received from the satellite; a storage medium coupled to the receiver for storing the encoded video and audio signals; a modulator coupled to the receiver for selectively modulating the downconverted encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is within a coverage area of the satellites, and the stored encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is outside the coverage area of the satellites; an in-seat video and audio distribution system coupled to the modulator for distributing the modulated and encoded video and audio signals for viewing by the passengers; and seat electronics circuitry coupled to the in-seat video and audio distribution system that comprises a demodulator, a decoder, a digital to analog converter, and a tuner, for demodulating, decoding and D/A converting the modulated and encoded video and audio signals into signals that may be viewed and heard by the passengers at their seats by way of displays and headphones. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A satellite television system that distributes television programs to passengers on an aircraft derived from direct broadcast satellites, said system comprising:
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an antenna that comprises steering means for steering the antenna toward the satellite in response to control signals supplied thereto; antenna control means for providing the control signals to the antenna and for processing status signals derived from the antenna to steer the antenna so that it is locked onto encoded RF signals transmitted by the satellite, and for downconverting the encoded RF signals to provide encoded left hand and right hand circularly polarized RF signals that correspond to a plurality of encoded television channels; a receiver coupled to the antenna control means for processing the downconverted encoded RF signals to provide encoded video and audio output signals corresponding to a selected television channel, and for feeding back the status signals to the antenna control means which are used to steer the antenna to lock it onto the RF signals received from the satellite; a storage medium coupled to the receiver for storing the encoded video and audio signals for the selected television channel; a modulator coupled to the receiver for selectively modulating the downconverted encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is within a coverage area of the satellites, and the stored encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is outside the coverage area of the satellites; a video and audio distribution system coupled to the modulator for distributing the modulated and encoded video and audio signals for viewing by the passengers. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. Method of providing delayed distribution of television programs from satellites of a direct broadcast satellite system to passengers on an aircraft, said method comprising:
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steering an antenna toward the satellites in response to control signals supplied thereto; providing control signals to the antenna; processing status signals derived from the antenna to steer the antenna so that it is locked onto encoded RF signals transmitted by the satellite; downconverting the encoded RF signals to provide encoded left hand and right hand circularly polarized RF signals that correspond to a plurality of encoded television channels; coupling an antenna control means to a receiver for processing the downconverted encoded RF signals to provide encoded video and audio output signals corresponding to at least one television channel; coupling a storage medium to the receiver, said storage medium operable to store the encoded video and audio signals; coupling a modulator to the receiver for selectively modulating the downconverted encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is within a coverage area of the satellites, and the stored encoded video and audio signals when the aircraft is outside the coverage area of the satellites; and coupling a video and audio distribution system to the modulator for distributing the modulated and encoded video and audio signals for viewing by the passengers.
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Specification