Method for providing scalable in-band and out-of-band access within a video-on-demand environment

• US 6,240,553 B1
• Filed: 12/10/1999
• Issued: 05/29/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Comcast IP Holdings I LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: DIVA Systems Corporation
• Inventors: Leimer, Michael E., Son, Yong Ho
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): BUI, KIEU OANH T
• Application Number:
  US09/458,895
• Time in Patent Office: 536 Days
• Field of Search: 348/7, 348/10, 348/12, 348/13, 709/217, 709/218, 709/219, 455/4.2, 455/5.1, 370/468, 370/528, 725/95, 725/96, 725/126
• US Class Current: 725/95
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/222 Secondary servers, e.g. proxy server, cable television Head-end provisioning of proxy services in data packet switching networks H04L67/56
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26216 involving the channel capacity, e.g. network bandwidth admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a schedule or organising the servicing of application requests taking into account QoS H04L67/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

A method and apparatus for adapting in-band channel bandwidth and out-of-band channel bandwidth to incremental increases or decreases in subscriber populations within a video-on-demand system or digital services provided to subscribers within the video-on-demand system.

Claims

1. In an interactive information distribution system comprising information provider equipment coupled to information consumer equipment via a communications network supporting an in-band communications channel and an out-of-band communications channel, a method for adapting said provider equipment in response to changes in the appropriate size of out-of-band channel bandwidth requirements, said method comprising the steps of:

defining a relationship between an incremental increase in in-band channel bandwidth capability and an incremental increase in out-of-band channel bandwidth capability, wherein increases in bandwidth requirements for either channel above respective threshold levels results in the addition of an access controller to the system, said access controller providing predefined amounts of in-band channel bandwidth and out-of-band channel bandwidth, said predefined amounts of in-band and out-of-band channel bandwidth of said access controller conforming to said defined relationship.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said relationship comprises a fixed ratio of in-band channel bandwidth and out-of-band channel bandwidth.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said ratio is defined by providing, within each access controller, a first number of forward data channel modulators, a second number of reverse data channel demodulators, and a third number of forward applications channel modulators.

4. In an interactive information distribution system comprising information provider equipment having a plurality of access controllers coupled to information consumer equipment via a communications network, for supporting an in-band communications channel and an out-of-band channel, a method for managing said in-band channel bandwidth and said out-of-band channel bandwidth, comprising the steps of:

determining via said session controller, whether said in-band channel bandwidth requirements have incrementally increased or decreased for each access controller beyond an in-band threshold level;

determining whether said out-of-band channel bandwidth requirements have incrementally increased or decreased for each access controller beyond an out-of-band threshold level;

defining a fixed ratio of in-band channel bandwidth to out-of-band channel bandwidth with respect to current capabilities of said plurality of access controllers;

adding one or more access controllers to the plurality of access controllers in an instance where the in-band or out-of-band threshold levels are exceeded;

reallocating said information consumer equipment among said plurality of access controllers, wherein said in-band and out-of-band channel bandwidths are changed in an amount proportional to said fixed ratio.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step of:

removing one or more access controllers from the plurality of access controllers in an instance where the in-band or out-of-band threshold levels are not exceeded.