System and method for providing described television services

• US 5,900,908 A
• Filed: 01/25/1996
• Issued: 05/04/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: National Captioning Institute, Inc.
• Original Assignee: National Captioning Institute, Inc.
• Inventors: Kirkland, C. Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Kostak, Victor R.
• Application Number:
  US08/591,101
• Time in Patent Office: 1,195 Days
• Field of Search: 348/461, 348/553, 348/564, 348/465, 348/552, 348/478, 348/480, 348/467, 348/725, 348/460, 348/62, 348/482, 348/484, 348/738, 348/468, 704/260, 704/271, 704/277
• US Class Current: 348/62
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 21/006 using audible presentation of the information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23614 Multiplexing of additional data and video streams arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information H04H20/28
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/432 Content retrieval operation from a local storage medium, e.g. hard-disk details of retrieval of video data and associated meta data in video databases G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4355 involving reformatting operations of additional data, e.g. HTML pages on a television screen optimising the visualization of content for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/9577; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/066; media handling at the source in data packet switching networks H04L65/764
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/440236 by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures, audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4856 for language selection, e.g. for the menu or subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/073 for mutually locking plural sources of synchronising signals, e.g. studios or relay stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/60 for the sound signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/06 Systems for the simultaneous transmission of one television signal, i.e. both picture and sound, by more than one carrier H04N7/084, H04N7/087 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0885 for the transmission of subtitles
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0887 for the transmission of programme or channel identifying signals

Abstract

An apparatus for providing described television services includes a receiver for receiving description data corresponding to an audiovisual program; a text-to-speech converter for converting the description data into a speech signal corresponding to the description data; a memory device for receiving and storing the speech signal and a corresponding time code from the audiovisual program; a mixing circuit for retrieving the speech signal from the memory device and mixing the retrieved speech signal with the audio track of the audiovisual program to produce a combined audio signal; and a transmitter for simultaneously providing the combined speech signal and the audiovisual program to a viewer. The apparatus provides the combined speech signal to the viewer via the SAP channel. The apparatus may also include a translator for translating the description data into a foreign language prior to converting the description data into the speech signal.

A method for providing described television services includes the steps of generating description data corresponding to an audiovisual program; converting the description data to a speech signal corresponding to the description data; synchronizing the speech signal with the audiovisual program using a time code signal from the audiovisual program; mixing the synchronized speech signal with the audio track of the audiovisual program to create a combined audio signal; and simultaneously transmitting the combined audio signal and the audiovisual program to the viewer.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing described television services, comprising:

description data receiving means for receiving description data corresponding to an audiovisual program;

a translator for translating said description data into a foreign language;

a text-to-speech converter for converting said description data into a speech signal corresponding to said description data;

storage means for receiving and storing said speech signal and a corresponding time code signal from the audiovisual program; and

a mixing circuit for mixing said retrieved speech signal with the audio track of the audiovisual program according to said time code signal to produce a combined audio signal.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said description data receiving means is responsive to one of a marker for marking said description data or a separate channel from a closed caption data channel representing an audio portion of said audiovisual program.

2. An apparatus for providing described television services, comprising:

a translator for translating description data into a foreign language;

recording means for recording a speech signal corresponding to said description data for an audiovisual program;

synchronizing means for synchronizing said speech signal with the audiovisual program using a time code signal from the audiovisual program; and

a mixing circuit for mixing said synchronized speech signal with the audio track of the audiovisual program to produce a combined audio signal.

9. The apparatus of claim 2 further comprising one of a marking means for marking said descriptive data or receiving means responsive to a separate channel from a closed caption data channel representing an audio portion of said audiovisual program.

3. A method for providing described television services, comprising the steps of:

generating description data corresponding to an audiovisual program;

translating said description data into a foreign language;

converting said description data to a speech signal corresponding to said description data;

synchronizing said speech signal with the audiovisual program using a time code signal from the audiovisual program; and

mixing said synchronized speech signal with the audio track of the audiovisual program to create a combined audio signal.

10. The method of claim 3 further comprising the step of one of marking said description data or transmitting said description data on a separate channel from a closed caption data channel representing an audio portion of said audiovisual program.

4. Apparatus for providing described television services comprising

means for generating a description data signal, said description data signal representing descriptive data comprising auxiliary data transmitted for describing a non-verbal portion of an audiovisual program,

means for marking said description data signal,

means for inserting said marked description data signal into a channel for closed captioning data, and

means for transmitting said closed captioning data channel.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said closed captioning data channel is simultaneously applied for closed captioning for the hearing-impaired.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said marking step comprises marking said description data differently from closed captioning data.

7. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said closed captioning data channel is a separate channel from one applied for closed captioning data for an audio portion of an audio-visual program.

11. Apparatus for providing described television services, comprising:

a translator for translating description data for an audiovisual program into a foreign language,

recording means for recording a speech signal corresponding to said translated description data for said audiovisual program,

synchronizing means for synchronizing said speech signal with an audio track signal of said audiovisual program using a time code signal from said audiovisual program, and

a mixing circuit for mixing said synchronized speech signal with said audio track signal of said audiovisual program to produce a combined audio signal.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said description data comprises auxiliary data transmitted for describing the non-verbal portion of an audiovisual program.