Electronic newspaper and electronic publishing medium

• US 5,970,231 A
• Filed: 11/27/1996
• Issued: 10/19/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Pen Industries Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Pen Industries Incorporated
• Inventors: Crandall, Robert D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Geckil, Mehmet B.
• Application Number:
  US08/753,608
• Time in Patent Office: 1,056 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.68, 395/200.36, 395/200.97, 395/200.99, 395/200.8, 395/200.3, 395/200.76, 395/200.47, 395/200.48, 395/200.49, 705/26, 705/27, 707/203, 345/326, 345/333, 345/330
• US Class Current: 709/238
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/0283 for data storage and retrieval

Abstract

A portable electronic newspaper is portable, lightweight, battery operated, and has a full color display screen, passive stylus for writing and selecting icons from menus, speech and sound reproduction, and the ability to store massive amounts of data. An electronic publishing media is supplied by all of the various national and international publishers, and is formatted using vendor supplied software and sent via optical cable to a central data exchange. From this facility, publications are routed to their intended recipients without processing of the context of each individual publication. Such publications include, but are not limited to, newspapers, magazines, periodicals, advertisements, books, and federal government documentation.

Claims

1. An electronic newspaper comprising:

a portable outer casing;

a touch sensitive display panel fixed to said portable outer casing;

a computer system contained within said portable outer casing for receiving data indicative of an electronic publication, and for causing the electronic publication to be displayed on said display panel;

a wireless stylus detachably connected to said portable outer casing;

a menu button located on said portable outer casing for causing said computer system to activate a menu for display on said display panel, said menu being selectable by the user using said wireless stylus;

a first scroll button for causing a displayed publication to advance in a forward or backward direction one page at a time;

a second scroll button for causing the displayed publication to advance forward to backward one section at a time; and

a base station having an insertion slot for inserting said portable outer casing therein, and for downloading electronic publication data to the computer system contained within said portable outer casing via an infrared interface.

2. A distribution system for distributing electronic media, for use with a high speed fiber optic network and a communication link, said distribution system comprising:

a publication apparatus to be operably linked to the high speed fiber optic network, operable to transmit, via the high speed fiber optic network, electronic media in a data burst during a time period uniquely assigned to said publication apparatus;

a local distribution service provider apparatus to be operably linked to the high speed fiber optic network, operable to receive locally desired electronic media via the high speed fiber optic network and to assign a time code to each locally desired electronic media;

a central data exchange to be operably linked to the high speed fiber optic network, operable to receive the electronic media from said publication apparatus, via the high speed fiber optic network, and to transmit the locally desired electronic media to said local distribution service provider apparatus via the high speed fiber optic network; and

a plurality of user stations to be operably linked to said local distribution service provider apparatus via the communication link;

wherein said local distribution service provider apparatus is operable to transmit the locally desired electronic media, via the communication link, to said plurality of user stations according to the time code assigned to each of the locally desired electronic media, and each of said plurality of user stations is operable to selectively receive, via the communication link, particular user desired electronic media from the locally desired electronic media based on the time code of the locally desired electronic media and a particular time code of the particular user desired electronic media.

3. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, wherein at least one of said plurality of user stations comprises a base station operable to transfer the particular user desired electronic media to a portable electronic media device.

4. A distribution system as claimed in claim 3, wherein said base station includes an insertion slot for inserting said portable electronic media device therein, and said base station and said portable electronic media device include an infrared interface operable to facilitate the transfer of the particular user desired electronic media to said portable electronic media device.

5. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, wherein at least one of said plurality of user stations comprises a plurality of docking stations each operable to transfer the particular user desired electronic media to a respective portable electronic media device.

6. A distribution system as claimed in claim 5, wherein said docking stations include an insertion slot for inserting said respective portable electronic media device therein, and said docking stations and said respective portable electronic media devices include an infrared interface operable to facilitate the transfer of the particular user desired electronic media to said respective portable electronic media devices.

7. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising the high speed fiber optic network and the communication link.

8. A distribution system as claimed in claim 7, wherein said high speed fiber optic network comprises a high speed asynchronous transfer mode format fiber optic data network.

9. A distribution system as claimed in claim 7, wherein said high speed fiber optic network comprises at least one regional branch exchange.

10. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a plurality of said publication apparatus, wherein said central data exchange is operable to receive respective electronic media from said publication apparatuses and to transmit the locally desired electronic media, including electronic media from any of said publication apparatuses, to said local distribution service provider apparatus via the high speed fiber optic network.

11. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a plurality of said local distribution service provider apparatus, wherein said central data exchange is operable to transmit respective locally desired electronic media to said plurality of local distribution service provider apparatuses via the high speed fiber optic network.

12. A distribution system as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of said communication link such that each of said communication links is operably connected to at least one local distribution service provider apparatuses and to at least one of said user stations, wherein at least one of said communication links comprises a fiber-optic/coaxial-cable network.

13. A distribution system as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of said communication link such that each of said communication links is operably connected to at least one local distribution service provider apparatuses and to at least one of said user stations, wherein at least one of said communication links comprises a microwave transmitter and a microwave receiver.

14. A distribution system as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of said communication link such that each of said communication links is operably connected to at least one local distribution service provider apparatuses and to at least one of said user stations, wherein at least one of said communication links comprises a satellite transmitter and a satellite receiver.

15. A distribution system as claimed in claim 11, further comprising a plurality of said communication link such that each of said communication links is operably connected to at least one local distribution service provider apparatuses and to at least one of said user stations, wherein at least one of said communication links comprises a cellular telephone transmitter and a cellular telephone receiver.

16. A distribution system as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a plurality of said publication apparatus and a plurality of said local distribution service provider apparatus, wherein said central data exchange is operable to receive respective electronic media from said publication apparatuses and to transmit respective locally desired electronic media, including electronic media from any of said publication apparatuses, to said plurality of local distribution service provider apparatuses via the high speed fiber optic network.

17. A method of distributing electronic media for use with a high speed fiber optic network, a communication link, a media provider, a central data exchange, a local service provider, and a plurality of user stations, said method comprising:

transmitting electronic media, via the high speed fiber optic network, in a data burst from a media provider during a time period uniquely assigned to the media provider;

receiving the electronic media, via the high speed fiber optic network, at the central data exchange and transmitting locally desired electronic media from the central data exchange to the local distribution service provider via the high speed fiber optic network;

receiving the locally desired electronic media at the local service provider via the high speed fiber optic network;

assigning a time code to each locally desired electronic media;

transmitting the locally desired electronic media, via the communication link, from the local service provider to the plurality of user stations according to the time code of each of the locally desired electronic media; and

selectively receiving, at each user station via the communication link, particular user desired electronic media from the locally desired electronic media based on the time code of the locally desired electronic media and a particular time code of the particular user desired electronic media.

18. A method of distributing electronic media as claimed in claim 17, for use with a plurality of media providers, said method further comprising:

transmitting respective electronic media, via the high speed fiber optic network, in a data burst from the plurality of media providers during a time period uniquely assigned to each of the media providers;

receiving the respective electronic media from the media providers at the central data exchange; and

transmitting the locally desired electronic media, including electronic media from any of the media providers, from the central data exchange to the local service provider via the high speed fiber optic network.

19. A method of distributing electronic media as claimed in claim 17, for use with a plurality of local service providers, said method further comprising:

transmitting respective locally desired electronic media from the central data exchange to the plurality of local service providers; and

receiving the respective locally desired electronic media at the plurality of local service providers via the high speed fiber optic network.

20. A distribution system as claimed in claim 17, for use with a plurality of media providers and a plurality of local service providers, further comprising:

transmitting respective electronic media, via the high speed fiber optic network, in a data burst from the plurality of media providers during a time period uniquely assigned to each of the media providers;

receiving the respective electronic media from the media providers at the central data exchange;

transmitting respective locally desired electronic media, including electronic media from any of the media providers, from the central data exchange to the plurality of local service providers; and

receiving the respective locally desired electronic media at the plurality of local service providers via the high speed fiber optic network.