Method and system for displaying content while reducing burn-in of a display

• US 7,158,169 B1
• Filed: 03/07/2003
• Issued: 01/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Music Choice
• Original Assignee: Music Choice
• Inventors: Farber, Stuart H., Steinberg, Robert M., Yurman, Ronald M., McGonigal, Daniel L., Rosenberg, Jeremy C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kostak; Victor R.
• Application Number:
  US10/383,422
• Time in Patent Office: 1,397 Days
• Field of Search: 348/173, 348/377, 348/380, 348/553, 348563-569, 348/584, 348/588, 348/14.08, 348/14.07, 348/14.09, 348/14.12, 348/705, 715/867, 715/526, 715/517, 715/520, 386/55
• US Class Current: 348/173
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23617 by inserting additional data into a data carousel, e.g. inserting software modules into a DVB carousel arrangements for broadcast or for distribution of identical information repeatedly in broadcast distribution systems H04H20/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• 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 21/4349 by extracting from data carousels, e.g. extraction of software modules from a DVB carousel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8113 comprising music, e.g. song in MP3 format

Abstract

A method and system for reducing burn-in of a display is disclosed. A plurality of assets containing text, graphics, and video are stored and then gathered. These assets are then assembled into a template to form a video frame or “screen”, which is subsequently output in a video transport stream or video display. Based upon a trigger, the assets are gathered again and reassembled in a second template to form a second video frame or screen wherein the assets are in positions on the screen, which are different from those of the first screen. The second screen is subsequently output to the video transport stream and the process is repeated.

Claims

1. A method for reducing burn-in of a display during a broadcast comprising:

storing a plurality of distinct visual assets, wherein the plurality of distinct visual assets includes a first visual asset comprising a first complete image and a second visual asset comprising a second complete image;

in response to a trigger, automatically retrieving the first and second assets and generating a first screen comprising the first and second complete images, wherein the first complete image is positioned at a first screen position and the second complete image is positioned at a second screen position that is different than the first screen position;

after generating the first screen, broadcasting the first screen to a plurality of broadcast receivers;

generating a screen update trigger after broadcasting the first screen;

in response to the screen update trigger, generating a second screen comprising the first and second images, wherein the screen position of the first image for the second screen is different than the screen position of the first image for the first screen; and

after generating the second screen, broadcasting the second screen to the plurality of broadcast receivers.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing a plurality of screen templates, wherein the screen position of the first asset in the first screen and the screen position of the second asset in the first screen are determined by one of said plurality of templates.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first screen is multiplexed with an audio signal corresponding to a first portion of an audio recording to generate a multiplexed signal.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the multiplexed signal is broadcast over a broadband network to the plurality of broadcast receivers.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the first complete image is an image of an album cover associated with the audio recording and the second complete image is a logo.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each broadcast receiver is operable to transmit the first screen to a display device coupled to the broadcast receiver.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

storing a plurality of audio recordings in a storage unit, wherein the first visual asset corresponds to at least one of the plurality of audio recordings;

retrieving the at least one audio recording;

broadcasting to the plurality of broadcast receivers an audio signal corresponding to a portion of the audio recording concurrently with the first screen so that the plurality of broadcast receivers receive the broadcast audio signal and the first screen concurrently.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising queuing the first screen for broadcast to the plurality of broadcast receivers immediately after generating the first screen.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the screen position of the first image for the first screen is different than the screen position of the first image for the second screen by no more than a few pixels in any direction.

10. A method of preventing screen burn-in comprising:

storing a plurality of image files in data store, each image file containing a complete image;

storing a plurality of audio recordings

storing in a database data that associates each of said plurality of audio recordings with at least one of said image files;

storing a playlist that includes a list of audio recording identifiers, each of which identifies one of the plurality of audio recordings;

using the playlist to select an audio recording from said plurality of audio recordings;

retrieving the selected audio recording;

retrieving from the data store a first image file and a second image file, wherein the first image file stores a first complete image and the second image file stores a second complete image, and wherein the first image file is associated with the selected audio recording;

after retrieving the first and second image files, generating a first screen comprising the first complete image stored in the first image file and the second complete image stored in the second image file, wherein said first image is positioned at a first screen position and said second image is positioned at a second screen position;

concurrently transmitting to a broadcast receiving device, via a network, a first portion of the audio recording and the generated first screen;

generating a second screen while a portion of the audio recording is being transmitted to the broadcast receiving device, wherein the second screen comprises the first complete image and the second complete image, wherein, for the second screen, the first image has a position that is different than the position it had for the first screen; and

concurrently transmitting the generated second screen and a second portion the audio recording to the broadcast receiving device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of generating the first screen comprises using a template to determine the first screen position for the image from the first image file.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of concurrently transmitting to the receiving device, via a network, the first portion of the audio recording and the generated first screen comprises multiplexing an audio signal corresponding to the first portion of the audio recording with the first screen to generate a multiplexed signal.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the multiplexed signal is broadcast over a broadband network.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the difference between the position of the first image in the first screen and the position of said image in the second screen is not more than a few pixels in any direction.

15. A system for reducing screen burn-in caused by transmission of screens to a display, the system comprising:

at least one data source for housing screen assets and a plurality of templates, wherein each template associates each of a plurality of asset types with a unique screen position;

a data carousel subsystem for retrieving screen assets and assembling a screen by positioning the retrieved screen assets in accordance with a template selected from the plurality of templates; and

a transmitter for transmitting to a receiving device, via a network, the assembled screen concurrently with an audio signal corresponding to a selected audio recording.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising a multiplexer for multiplexing the assembled screen with the audio signal.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising a broadcast playout system configured to select audio recordings and configured to transmit a trigger to the data carousel upon selecting an audio recording.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the data carousel system is configured to assemble a screen in response to receiving a trigger from the broadcast playout system.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein a first template associates a first asset type with a first screen position and a second template associates the first asset type with a second screen position, wherein the distance between the first position and the second position is not more than a few pixels.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the data carousel subsystem is part of a computer.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the data carousel subsystem comprises a computer.

22. In an environment comprising an audio transmission system and a receiving device for receiving audio signals and images transmitted from the transmissions system, a method for displaying the images on a display device coupled to the receiving device, comprising:

(a) receiving at the receiving device an audio signal transmitted from the transmission system, wherein the audio signal corresponds to a specific audio recording, and outputting the audio signal so that a user of the device may listen to the audio recording;

(b) while performing step (a);

(1) receiving at the receiving device a first complete image and a second complete image transmitted from the transmission system, wherein the images are received at the same time;

(2) in response to receiving the images, concurrently displaying the images on the display screen, wherein the first image covers only a first portion of the display screen and the second image covers only a second portion of the display screen, wherein the first portion of the display screen differs from the second portion;

(3) after performing steps (1) and (2), receiving at the receiving device data transmitted from the transmission system;

(4) in response to receiving the data, displaying the first image on the display screen so that the first image covers only a third portion of the display screen and displaying the second image on the display screen so that the second image covers only a fourth portion of the display screen, wherein the third portion of the display screen is different than the first portion, the fourth portion of the display screen is different than the second portion, and the third portion does not overlap at all with the fourth portion.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the first image is an image of a CD cover corresponding to a CD on which the audio recording is recorded.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the second image is an image of a logo.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the center of the first portion of the display screen is not more than a few pixels apart from the center of the third portion of the display screen.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein the data transmitted from the transmission system comprises the first and second images.