Censoring assembly adapted for use with closed caption television

• US 6,075,550 A
• Filed: 12/23/1997
• Issued: 06/13/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Clearplay Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Diane Lapierre
• Inventors: Lapierre, Diane
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew I.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Miller, John W.
• Application Number:
  US08/997,531
• Time in Patent Office: 903 Days
• Field of Search: 348/5.5, 348/9, 348/473, 348/474, 348/476-479, 348/553, 348/563, 348/564, 348/725, 348/907, 348/461, 348/465, 348/468
• US Class Current: 725/25
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4396 by muting the audio signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4884 for displaying subtitles
• 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

A censoring assembly is adapted for use with a television tuner outputting a signal having a closed caption component signal. A closed caption decoding device produces a video signal having no closed caption component and converts the closed caption component into an uncensored text data signal. A censor device deletes words contained within the uncensored text data signal found in a list of offensive words, creating a censored text data signal, and may also turn off the audio signal for a timed period. The list of offensive words is generally pre-loaded with such words and phrases, but the censor device typically contains support for allowing the user to add objectionable words and for the down-loading of objectionable words from a remote location. A closed caption generator inputs the video signal having no closed caption component and the censored text data signal and generates a video signal having a censored closed caption component.

Claims

1. A censoring assembly adapted for use with a signal having a closed caption component, the censoring assembly comprising:

(A) closed caption decoding means, connected to the signal having a closed caption component, for producing a video signal having no closed caption component and for converting the closed caption component to an uncensored text data signal;

(B) censor device means, connected to the closed caption decoding means, for deleting portions of the uncensored text data signal found to be objectionable, thereby forming a censored text data signal; and

(C) closed caption generator means, connected to the censored text data signal and to the video signal having no closed caption component, for generating a video signal having a censored closed caption component.

2. The censoring assembly of claim 1, wherein the censor device means further comprises means for switching off, for a timed period, an audio signal portion of the signal having a closed caption component, in response to the deleting of portions of the uncensored text data signal found to be objectionable.

3. The censoring assembly of claim 1, wherein the censor device means further comprises a pre-loaded list of offensive words to be censored.

4. The censoring assembly of claim 1, wherein the censor device means further comprises means for allowing the user to add or delete words contained in a list of offensive words.

5. The censoring assembly of claim 1, wherein the censor device means further comprises means for modifying a list of offensive words by down-loading information from a remote location.

6. A censoring assembly adapted for use with a signal having a closed caption component, the censoring assembly comprising:

(A) closed caption decoding means, connected to the signal having a closed caption component, for producing a video signal having no closed caption component and for converting the closed caption component to an uncensored text data signal;

(B) censor device means, connected to the closed caption decoding means, for deleting portions of the uncensored text data signal found to be objectionable, thereby forming a censored text data signal, the censor device means further comprising;

(a) means for switching off, for a timed period, an audio signal portion of the signal output having a closed caption component, in response to the deleting of portions of the uncensored text data signal found to be objectionable;

(b) a list of offensive words pre-loaded with words to be censored;

(c) means for allowing the user to add or delete words contained in the list of offensive words; and

(d) means for modifying the list of offensive words by down-loading information from a remote location; and

(C) closed caption generator means, connected to the censored text data signal and to the video signal having no closed caption component, for generating a video signal having a censored closed caption component.