Data structure and methods for providing an interactive program guide

• US 6,754,905 B2
• Filed: 04/15/1999
• Issued: 06/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: TiVo Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: DIVA Systems Corporation
• Inventors: Edmonds, Jeremy S., Osborn, Nathan W., Gordon, Donald F., Ludvig, Edward A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Faile, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): BROWN, RUEBEN M
• Application Number:
  US09/293,526
• Publication Number:
  US 20010056577A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,895 Days
• Field of Search: 345/327, 348/563, 348/568, 348/384.1, 348/439.1, 725/37-60, 725/131-153
• US Class Current: 725/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6547 comprising parameters, e.g. for client setup
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8133 specifically related to the content, e.g. biography of the actors in a movie, detailed information about an article seen in a video program
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only
• 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 program guide in which a video layer includes a plurality of video objects including title objects, each title object having associated with it a channel and at least one time slot, the video layer being formed in response to a received video stream; and a graphics layer comprising a plurality of graphics objects including title overlay objects, each of the title overlay objects selectively imparting at least a visual de-emphasis to a respective title object in the video layer, the visual de-emphasis being imparted to title objects not being associated with a desired time slot.

Claims

1. A method for a user interaction routine for a user terminal which may be tuned to a stream of information from a provider thereof from which at least one transport stream may be demodulated, the method comprising:

demultiplexing a transport stream to obtain an encoded video stream and an encoded audio stream, the encoded video stream and the encoded audio stream each having a packet identifier;

decoding the encoded video stream to provide a decoded video stream;

retrieving overlay information stored at the user terminal;

producing a merged information stream using the overlay information and the decoded video stream;

decoding the encoded audio stream to provide a decoded audio stream;

presenting user perceptible audio-visual information from the decoded audio stream and the merged information stream;

determining whether a provided user selection is associated with interactivity processing or user terminal processing; and

in response to the user selection being associated with interactivity processing, determining whether a time-dependent stream or a time-independent stream is selected for the interactivity processing.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

in response to the user selection being associated with user terminal processing, modifying the overlay information.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the user selection provided comprises changing contents of a program grid.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the user selection provided comprises indicating a selection of an object, the object being emphasized using the overlay information.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the overlay information is for a predetermined on screen program guide display.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the time-dependent stream is a broadcast stream or a narrowcast stream.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the time-independent stream is a pointcast stream.