System for nonlinear viewing of television show segments

• US 6,977,691 B1
• Filed: 08/14/2000
• Issued: 12/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Middleton, Ryan, Thrift, Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Natnael, Paulos M.
• Application Number:
  US09/639,574
• Time in Patent Office: 1,954 Days
• Field of Search: 348/473, 348/486, 348/467, 348/724, 348/554, 348/461, 348/723, 348/725, 725/20, 725/22, 725/34, 725/35, 725/9, 725/134
• US Class Current: 348/473
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/28 Arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/71 Wireless systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 40/27 specially adapted for broadcast systems covered by groups H04H20/53 - H04H20/95
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/27 Arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4331 Caching operations, e.g. of an advertisement for later insertion during playback
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44016 involving splicing one content stream with another content stream, e.g. for substituting a video clip
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47205 for manipulating displayed content, e.g. interacting with MPEG-4 objects, editing locally
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0806 the signals being two or more video signals H04N7/0803, H04N7/081 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/088 the inserted signal being digital

Abstract

A system for nonlinear viewing of television show segments is provided by transmitting a main signal and an ancillary signal. The ancillary signal is a short show segment. The television receiver system can select either the main signal or the ancillary signal. The ancillary signal is stored in a small cache memory for later access in place of the main signal. An icon is generated on the television set to notify the user of the presence of the ancillary signal.

Claims

1. A system for nonlinear viewing of television segments comprising:

a television broadcast transmitter including means for generating and transmitting main uncompressed broadcast television signals and separate ancillary uncompressed broadcast television signals with separate television show segment related to said main television signals;

a television receiver system for receiving said main television signals and for receiving and storing in a cache memory the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signal including the separate television show segment; and

selective means at the television receiver for providing either the uncompressed broadcast main television signals or the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signals with the separate television show segment to a display of said television receiver said television signals are transmitted over a digital television channel subdivided into several subchannels of multiplexed signals and wherein one of said subchannels contains said main uncompressed broadcast television signals and the other subchannels provide ancillary uncompressed broadcast signals;

said main uncompressed broadcast subchannel carries the control data for updating and removing old subchannel segments and storing new ones.

2. The system of claim 1 including means for generating an icon on a television receiver display indicating the presence of the stored uncompressed broadcast ancillary signals and means at the television receiver for accessing said store signal in said cache memory using said icon.

3. A system for nonlinear viewing of television segments comprising:

a television broadcast transmitter including means for generating and transmitting main uncompressed broadcast television signals and separate ancillary uncompressed broadcast television signals with separate television show segment related to said main television signals;

a television receiver system for receiving said main television signals and for receiving and storing in a cache memory the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signal including the separate television show segment; and

selective means at the television receiver for providing either the uncompressed broadcast main television signals or the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signals with the separate television show segment to a display of said television receiver said television signals are transmitted over a digital television channel subdivided into several subchannels of multiplexed signals and wherein one of said subchannels contains said main uncompressed broadcast television signals and the other subchannels provide ancillary uncompressed broadcast signals;

said separate uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signal contains short television signal segments related to the main uncompressed broadcast signals and said cache stores said segments and said main uncompressed broadcast signals and contains control data providing means for removing and storing said segments and said receiver system includes means responsive to said control data for storing said segments and removing said short segments from said cache memory.

4. A system for nonlinear viewing of television segments comprising:

a television broadcast transmitter including means for generating and transmitting main uncompressed broadcast television signals and separate ancillary uncompressed broadcast television signals with separate television show segment related to said main television signals;

a television receiver system for receiving said main television signals and for receiving and storing in a cache memory the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signal including the separate television show segment; and

selective means at the television receiver for providing either the uncompressed broadcast main television signals or the uncompressed broadcast ancillary television signals with the separate television show segment to a display of said television receiver;

said main uncompressed broadcast signals and ancillary uncompressed broadcast signals are different parts of a high definition uncompressed broadcast television signal.

5. The system of claim 4 including means for switching between high definition uncompressed broadcast television channel and one standard uncompressed broadcast television channel and an uncompressed broadcast ancillary channel.

6. The system of claim 5 including means for generating an icon on a television receiver display indicating the presence of the stored uncompressed broadcast ancillary signals and means at the television receiver for accessing said store signal in said cache memory using said icon.