System and method to provide interactivity for a networked video server

• US 6,055,560 A
• Filed: 11/08/1996
• Issued: 04/25/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Krishnaswamy, Srivatsa, Mills, William Allen, Nguyen, Tien Haphi, Nguyen, Tien Michael, Stein, Frank L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Le Hien
• Assistant Examiner(s): VU, THONG H
• Application Number:
  US08/745,342
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.5, 395/806, 395/119, 348/13, 348/7, 348/8, 348/6, 348/1, 348/9, 348/12, 370/396, 370/522, 370/397, 370/259, 370/85.4, 370/432, 455/4.2, 379/207, 379/142, 709/231, 380/25, 707/104, 364/401
• US Class Current: 709/200
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234363 by altering the spatial resolution, e.g. for clients with a lower screen resolution
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2387 Stream processing in response to a playback request from an end-user, e.g. for trick-play
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2396 characterized by admission policies admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; arrangements for network security using user profiles for access control H04L63/102; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2543 Billing , e.g. for subscription services payment schemes, architectures or protocols G06Q20/00; e-commerce G06Q30/00; arrangements for billing for the use of broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/21
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/488 Data services, e.g. news ticker systems specially adapted for using meteorological information in broadcast systems H04H60/71
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 Transmission or handling of upstream communications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

An interactive video system supports functions typically expected with a VCR such as play, pause, fast forward and rewind. A set top box is coupled to a display terminal and a first interface. The set top box includes a memory for storing an operating system in set top enabling codes. A video dial tone network includes a control channel and a data channel coupled to a second interface linked to the first interface. A first gateway controls establishment of a video session between a video server and the display terminal. A second gateway establishes connection between the video server and the set top box over a data channel in response to an input from the first gateway. An application server coupled to the first gateway and the video server contains executable code for transferring video data, video and audio information from the video server to the display terminal. The application server includes a shared queue coupled to a plurality of application engines and set top boxes and includes program code for multi-tasking operation. The code operates the application engines in response to application tables to provide video transmission as a panel object indicative of the state of set top boxes in a video session.

Claims

1. An interactive television network comprising:

a set top box in a user location;

an application server in the network coupled to the set top box;

a video server coupled to the application server and coupled over a high speed communications link to the set top box;

database means coupled to the application server for storing applications as panels;

application libraries coupled to the application server for storing commands related to the panels;

the application server including a shared queue coupled to a plurality of set top boxes for exchanging commands governing the behavior of the panels which control video data communicated from the video server to the set top box; and

a plurality of set top boxes serviced by a plurality of video applications on a time shared basis using the shared queue, the set top boxes comprising an event handler coupled to an event queue;

a vcr agent and a graphics agent.

21. The interactive video system of claim 1 wherein the event handler comprises an event command handler;

an event reporter;

a message router a programming interface for interacting with the vcr and graphic agents.

2. An interactive video system comprising:

a) a set top box coupled to a display terminal and a first interface;

b) a video dial tone network including a control channel and a data channel coupled through a second interface to the first interface;

c) a first gateway coupled to the control channel;

d) a video server coupled to the first gateway and to the data channel;

e) a second gateway coupled to the control channel and the data channel, the second gateway including an application server including a shared queue coupled to a plurality of set top boxes, the set top boxes including an event handler coupled to an event queue;

vcr agent and a graphics agent;

f) database means coupled to the application server for storing applications as panels expressed as an event list, a hot spot navigation map, and panel object description;

g) application libraries for providing commands related to the behavior of a panel provided to the set top box by the application server; and

h) table means responsive to the application server for indicating the operating state of the set top box.

3. In an interactive video system for controlling interactive video-on demand files in a server through a video dial tone network and set top boxes to a plurality of subscribers, a method comprising the steps of:

a) activating a set top box coupled to a display terminal and a first interface for a video session;

b) coupling the video dial tone network to the first interface through a control channel;

c) coupling a first gateway to the control channel and the video server to establish the video session between the interactive video on demand files and a subscriber;

d) storing an application as panels expressed as data in a database where the data defines an event list, hot spot navigation map and panel object description; and

e) activating an application server and application libraries to interact with the database and the video server to deliver over the data channel the application selected by a subscriber in a panel for viewing a video on demand file on the display through the set top box, the set boxes comrising an event handler coupled to an event queue;

avcr agent and a graphics agent.

5. The interactive video system of claim 3 wherein the control channel is a bid-directional channel between the first gateway and the set top box for purposes of transferring messages therebetween.

6. The interactive video system of claim 5 wherein the first gateway controls the establishment of a video session between the video server and the display terminal.

7. The interactive video system of claim 6 further comprising an application server coupled to the first gateway and the video server, the application server containing executable code for transferring video and audio information from the video server to the display terminal.

8. The interactive video system of claim 7 wherein the video server comprises a control server and a data server.

9. The interactive video system of claim 8 wherein the second gateway establishes a connection between the video server and the set top box over the data channel in response to an input from the first gateway.

10. The interactive video system of claim 9 wherein the set top box includes memory for storing an operating system and set top enabling code.

11. The interactive video system of claim 10 wherein the control server starts and stops the data server in response to commands from the first gateway.

12. The interactive video system of claim 11 wherein the data server includes storage means and responds to commands from the control server to locate video information in the storage means.

13. The interactive video system of claim 12 wherein the storage means includes an A buffer and a B buffer for transferring data from the data server to the display terminal.

14. The interactive video system of claim 13 wherein the application server includes a shared queue coupled to a plurality of application engines and set top boxes, and stored program instructions for a multi-tasking operating system.

15. The interactive video system of claim 14 further comprising application code for operating the application engines in response to application tables indicative of a state of a set top box in a video session.

16. The interactive video system of claim 15 further comprising video storage means for storing video data in panels.

17. The interactive video system of claim 16 wherein the second gateway includes a shared queue manager coupled to an application executor in the application server and an application message router, the router containing stored program instructions for i) handling all messages and protocols for the video dial tone network;

ii) handling all incoming and outgoing messages for the set top box through the control channel and iii) interpreting the messages received by i) and ii) in connection with establishing a video session, an operating system for controlling the operation of i), ii), and iii).

18. The interactive video system of claim 16 wherein the set top box comprises an operating system, a library of digital audio video interface devices, a player shell to boot up the set top box when the set top is powered on.

19. The interactive video system of claim 18 wherein the set top box further comprises an event sequencer responsive to selected device interfaces and the player shell, the sequencer capturing and interpreting messages on the selected interfaces where the messages relates to events applicable to the display terminal.

20. The interactive video system of claim 19 wherein the set top box further comprises an event handler coupled to the event queue;

a vcr agent and a graphics agent.

4. An article of manufacturing, comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer readable code means embodied therein for controlling interactive video-on demand files through a video dial tone network and set top boxes to a plurality of subscribers, the computer readable program code means in said article of manufacturing comprising;

a) computer readable program code means for activating the set top box coupled to a display terminal and a first interface;

b) computer readable program code means for connecting the set top box to the video dial tone network including a control channel and a data channel;

c) computer readable program code means in a first gateway responsive to the video dial tone network to establish a video session between the set top box and the interactive video on demand files in a video server using the control channel;

d) computer readable program code means for storing an application as panels expressed as data in a database where the data defines an event list, hot spot navigation map and panel object description; and

e) computer readable program code means in an application server coupled to the database for interacting with the video server in the video session using application libraries to deliver over the data channel an application selected by a subscriber for viewing on the display through the set top box, the set top boxes including an event handler coupled to an event queue;

a vcr agent and a graphics agent.