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Video distribution system

  • US 5,818,512 A
  • Filed: 04/04/1997
  • Issued: 10/06/1998
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/26/1995
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An interactive video services system for enabling the combination of images originating from two or more data sources for delivery on selected transmission channels to selected televisions, the system comprising:

  • a distribution network for delivering video programming to a plurality of selected televisions over said selected transmission channels;

    a systems control computer (SCS) connected to said network for storing and generating digitized data from a first source comprising data screens for presentation on one or more said selected televisions, said first source data screens being stored in a selected window of a memory electrically connected to SCS, said memory having multiple windows each associated with a separate one of said channels, each said window comprising sufficient memory space to store said first source data screen;

    converter circuitry electrically connected to said SCS for converting said first source data screens from a first digital format to a second digital format;

    a video server (VS) for storing digitized data from a second source comprising data screens for presentation on one or more said selected televisions, said second source data being stored in said second format; and

    decoder circuitry electrically connected to said SCS and said VS comprising at least one screen buffer for receiving and merging said second format data from said first and second sources, each said buffer for association with a specific transmission channel to one or more said selected televisions, and for converting said merged data to a format suitable for presentation on one or more said selected televisions, whereby said presentation on said one or more said selected televisions appears as a combined image of said first source and second source data.

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