Multichannel broadcasting system

• US 6,625,811 B1
• Filed: 04/23/1998
• Issued: 09/23/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kaneko, Shunji
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): SALCE, JASON P
• Application Number:
  US09/064,506
• Time in Patent Office: 1,979 Days
• Field of Search: 725/36, 725/91, 725/92, 725/94, 725/97, 725/98, 725/103, 725/114, 725/115, 725/138, 725/144, 725/145
• US Class Current: 725/94
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/12 Arrangements for observation, testing or troubleshooting
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/26 Arrangements for switching distribution systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/27 Arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23406 involving management of server-side video buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2385 Channel allocation H04N21/266 takes precedence; Bandwidth allocation H04N21/24 takes precedence ; allocation of channels according to the instantaneous demands of the users in time-division multiplex systems H04J3/1682; admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896; negotiating bandwidth in wireless networks H04W28/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2404 Monitoring of server processing errors or hardware failure error or fault detection G06F11/07; monitoring in general G06F11/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26258 for generating a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlist, or scheduling item distribution according to such list retrieval of multimedia data based on playlists G06F16/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/165 Centralised control of user terminal subsequent to an upstream request signal H04N7/17345; Registering at central by two-way working H04N7/17309

Abstract

A system output signals of broadcast contents in a multichannel broadcasting system without the need to suspend broadcasting even in the event of a failure occurring in an output buffer apparatus, includes a broadcast content storage unit for storing data of the broadcast contents, a plurality of main output buffer apparatuses each assigned to some of several output channels wherein data of broadcast contents to be output to the associated output channels is copied from the broadcast content storage unit to be output at output times as signals, backup output buffer apparatuses fewer in number than the main output buffer apparatuses wherein data of broadcast contents to be output to all the output channels is copied from the broadcast content storage unit, and a control unit for letting the backup output control apparatus output signals of broadcast contents stored therein for output channels associated with any of the main output buffer apparatuses to the output channels in the event of a failure occurring in any of the main output buffer apparatuses.

Claims

1. A multichannel broadcasting system for outputting a plurality of broadcast contents to a plurality of output channels comprising:

a storage unit for supplying said plurality of broadcast contents;

a plurality of main output buffer apparatuses corresponding to said plurality of output channels, respectively, for storing said plurality of broadcast contents and for transmitting the stored broadcast contents to the corresponding output channels in accordance with a predetermined transmission order;

means for assigning a priority order to said broadcast contents to be transmitted to said plurality of output channels on the basis of said predetermined transmission order;

a backup output buffer apparatus for storing said broadcast contents from said storage unit based on said priority order prior to the transmission of said broadcast contents from said main output buffer apparatuses to said corresponding output channels; and

a control unit for controlling said backup output buffer apparatus so that said backup output buffer apparatus transmits said broadcast contents stored therein to an output channel of a failed main output buffer apparatus instead of said broadcast contents stored in said failed main output buffer apparatus when said failed main output buffer apparatus fails, wherein

in the event of a failure occurring in any of said plurality of main output buffer apparatuses, said control unit assigns said backup output buffer apparatus as a main output buffer apparatus to said output channel corresponding to said failed main output buffer apparatus; and

thereafter, signals of broadcast contents to be transmitted to said corresponding output channel corresponding to said failed main output buffer apparatus are copied from said storage unit to said backup output buffer apparatus, and

when said failed main output buffer apparatus is fixed, said control unit catalogs said fixed failed main output buffer apparatus as said backup output buffer apparatus; and

broadcast contents to be transmitted to said plurality of output channels are copied from said storage unit to said fixed failed main output buffer apparatus cataloged as said backup output buffer apparatus based on said priority order.

2. A multichannel broadcasting system for outputting a plurality of broadcast contents to a plurality of output channels, comprising:

a storage unit for supplying said broadcast contents;

a plurality of output buffer apparatuses wherein a number of said plurality of output buffer apparatuses is greater than a number of output buffer apparatuses required for assignment to said plurality of output channels; and

a control unit for causing broadcast contents to be copied from said storage unit to said output buffer apparatuses and transmitted from said output buffer apparatuses to respective output channels corresponding with said output buffer apparatuses on the basis of a predetermined transmission order, wherein;

said control unit assigns some of said output buffer apparatuses to correspond to a respective plurality of said output channels as main output buffer apparatuses and remaining output buffer apparatuses respectively to all of said plurality of output channels as backup output buffer apparatuses;

broadcast contents to be transmitted to any of said plurality of output channels are stored in said a main output buffer apparatus corresponding to said output channel;

a priority order of the broadcast contents is determined based on the predetermined transmission order; and

broadcast contents to be transmitted to all of said plurality of output channels are stored in each of said backup output apparatuses based on the priority order of the broadcast contents; and

in the event of a failure occurring in any of said main output buffer apparatuses, said control unit assigns one of said backup output buffer apparatuses as a main output buffer apparatus for output channels associated with said main output buffer apparatus in which said failure occurred, wherein

said control unit has an apparatus assignment table for associating some of said output buffer apparatuses with a respective plurality of said output channels as a main output buffer apparatus and remaining output buffer apparatuses with a respective plurality of said output channels as a backup output buffer apparatus; and

signals of broadcast contents are copied from said storage unit to respective ones of said output buffer apparatuses in accordance with said apparatus assignment table.