Method of providing replay on demand for streaming digital multimedia
First Claim
1. A method of replaying on demand of a multimedia segment received in a digital multimedia stream representing the multimedia segment on a limited bandwidth communications path, the method comprising:
- storing at least a portion of a first layer of the digital multimedia stream in a memory;
requesting transmission of a second layer from a server system;
receiving the second layer of the digital multimedia stream corresponding to the stored portion of the first layer over the limited bandwidth communications path;
reading the stored portion of the first layer from the memory;
decoding the stored portion of the first layer and the received second layer; and
displaying the decoded first and second layers to the user.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
High quality replay of a streaming multimedia video segment on demand is provided. The multimedia segment may be transmitted as a stream by a server system and received by a client system over a fixed bandwidth communications path. The client system receives a base layer of the stream, decodes the base layer and displays the decoded base layer at a first quality level. The client system stores at least a portion of the base layer in a cache. When a request for replay service for the multimedia segment is received from a user, for high quality replay, the client system may receive at least one enhancement layer of the stream corresponding to the stored portion of the base layer. The client system may then read the stored portion of the base layer from the cache, decode the stored portion of the base layer and the at least one enhancement layer, and display the decoded base and enhancement layers at a second quality level, higher than the first quality level.
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Citations
42 Claims
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1. A method of replaying on demand of a multimedia segment received in a digital multimedia stream representing the multimedia segment on a limited bandwidth communications path, the method comprising:
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storing at least a portion of a first layer of the digital multimedia stream in a memory;
requesting transmission of a second layer from a server system;
receiving the second layer of the digital multimedia stream corresponding to the stored portion of the first layer over the limited bandwidth communications path;
reading the stored portion of the first layer from the memory;
decoding the stored portion of the first layer and the received second layer; and
displaying the decoded first and second layers to the user. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method of providing replay on demand of a multimedia segment obtained from a signal source by a server system, a first portion of the multimedia segment being transmitted as a first layer in a digital multimedia stream on a limited bandwidth communications path to a client system, the method comprising:
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storing a second portion of the multimedia segment as at least one second layer in a memory in the server system;
receiving a request for replay service of the multimedia segment from the client system;
reading the at least one second layer from the memory; and
transmitting the at least one second layer in the digital multimedia stream to the client system. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of providing replay on demand of a video segment having digital video data signals, the video segment being transmitted as a stream, the stream being received by a client system from a server system on a limited bandwidth communications path, the method comprising:
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receiving a base layer of the stream, decoding the base layer and displaying the decoded base layer at a first quality level;
storing at least a portion of the base layer in a memory in the client system;
receiving a request for replay for the video segment from a user of the client system;
receiving at least one enhancement layer of the stream corresponding to the stored portion of the base layer;
reading the stored portion of the base layer from the memory;
decoding the stored portion of the base layer and the at least one enhancement layer; and
displaying the decoded base and enhancement layers at a second quality level. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of providing replay on demand of a video segment having digital video data signals, the video segment being transmitted as a stream by a server system to a client system on a limited bandwidth communications path, the method comprising:
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transmitting a first portion of the video segment as a base layer of the stream to the client system;
storing a second portion of the video segment, the second portion corresponding to the first portion, as at least one enhancement layer in a memory in the server system;
receiving a request for replay service of the video segment;
reading the second portion from the memory; and
transmitting the second portion as the at least one enhancement layer in the stream to the client system.
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19. An apparatus for providing replay on demand of a multimedia segment having digital multimedia data signals comprising:
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a decoder to receive and decode a base layer of a stream representing the multimedia segment and to receive and decode an enhancement layer of the stream, the enhancement layer corresponding to the base layer; and
a graphical user interface, coupled to the decoder to display the decoded base layer of the stream as an original display of the multimedia segment at a first quality level, to receive a request for replay of the multimedia segment, and to display the decoded base layer and the decoded enhancement layer of the multimedia segment at a second quality level in response to the request. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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21. An apparatus for providing replay on demand service for a streaming multimedia segment having digital multimedia data signals, comprising:
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a source of the multimedia segment;
a memory to store at least a first portion of the multimedia segment; and
an encoder, coupled to the source and the memory, to receive the multimedia segment from the source, to encode a second portion of the multimedia segment as a first layer in a stream, to transmit the first layer of the stream to a client system for an original display of the multimedia segment, to receive a request for replay service, and to retrieve the first portion of the multimedia segment from the memory and transmit the first portion as a second layer in the stream to the client system for a replay display of the multimedia segment in response to the request. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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- 25. An article comprising a machine readable medium having a plurality of machine readable instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by a processor, the instructions cause a multimedia segment received in a digital multimedia stream representing the multimedia segment on a limited bandwidth communications path to be replayed by storing at least a portion of a first layer of the digital multimedia stream in a memory, requesting transmission of a second layer from a server system, by receiving the second layer of the digital multimedia stream corresponding to the stored portion of the first layer over the limited bandwidth communications path, by reading the stored portion of the first layer from the memory, by decoding the stored portion of the first layer and the received second layer, and by displaying the decoded first and second layers to the user.
- 26. An article comprising a machine readable medium having a plurality of machine readable instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by a processor, the instructions cause replay of a multimedia segment obtained from a signal source by a server system, a first portion of the multimedia segment being transmitted as a first layer in a digital multimedia stream over a limited bandwidth communications path to a client system, by storing a second portion of the multimedia segment as at least one second layer in a memory in the server system, by receiving a request for replay service of the multimedia segment from the client system, by reading the at least one second layer from the memory, and by transmitting the at least one second layer in the digital multimedia stream to the client system.
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27. An article comprising a machine readable medium having a plurality of machine readable instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by a processor, the instructions cause replay of a multimedia segment having digital multimedia data signals, the multimedia segment being transmitted as a stream, the stream being received by a client system from a server system on a limited bandwidth communications path, by receiving a base layer of the stream, by decoding the base layer and displaying the decoded base layer at a first quality level, by storing at least a portion of the base layer in a memory in the client system, by receiving a request for replay service for the multimedia segment from a user of the client system, by receiving at least one enhancement layer of the stream corresponding to the stored portion of the base layer, by reading the stored portion of the base layer from the cache;
- by decoding the stored portion of the base layer and the at least one enhancement layer, and by displaying the decoded base and enhancement layers at a second quality level.
- View Dependent Claims (41, 42)
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28. An article comprising a machine readable medium having a plurality of machine readable instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by a processor, the instructions cause replay of a multimedia segment having digital multimedia data signals, the multimedia segment being transmitted as a stream by a server system to a client system on a limited bandwidth communications path, by transmitting a first portion of the multimedia segment as a base layer of the stream to the client system, by storing a second portion of the multimedia segment, the second portion corresponding to the first portion, as at least one enhancement layer in a memory in the server system, by receiving a request for replay service of the multimedia segment, by reading the second portion from the memory, and by transmitting the second portion as the at least one enhancement layer in the stream to the client system.
Specification