Broadcast carousel system access for remote home communication terminal

• US 7,360,233 B2
• Filed: 09/05/2002
• Issued: 04/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Synamedia Limited
• Original Assignee: Scientific-Atlanta Incorporated (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Russ, Samuel H., Gaul, Michael A., Wasilewski, Anthony J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lonsberry; Hunter B.
• Application Number:
  US10/235,201
• Publication Number:
  US 20040049790A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,049 Days
• Field of Search: 725/49, 725/39, 725/48, 725/118
• US Class Current: 725/118
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4112 having fewer capabilities than the client, e.g. thin client having less processing power or no tuning capabilities
• 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 21/436 Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44231 Monitoring of peripheral device or external card, e.g. to detect processing problems in a handheld device or the failure of an external recording device configuring of peripheral devices in general G06F9/4411; reporting information sensed by appliance or service execution status of appliance services in a home automation network H04L12/2823; monitoring the status of connected device in data switched networks H04L43/0817
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for providing objects to a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) via a gateway device located at a customer premises. One such method, among others, includes receiving a message from a remote DHCT requesting a carousel object, receiving the carousel object from a server device, and transmitting the carousel object to the remote DHCT.

Claims

1. A method for providing carousel objects to a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) via a gateway device, the method comprising:

receiving at the gateway device a message from the remote DHCT requesting a carousel object;

receiving at the gateway device the carousel object, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast using a first protocol to the gateway device by a server device over a communications network;

converting by the gateway device the carousel object in the first protocol into a second protocol; and

responsive to the gateway receiving the message requesting the carousel object from the remote DHCT, transmitting by the gateway device the carousel object to the remote DHCT using the second protocol, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of receiving the carousel object is performed before the step of receiving the message from the remote DHCT.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

caching the carousel object prior to the step of receiving the message from the remote DHCT.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications network is a cable television network.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications network is

a satellite television network.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

editing the object prior to the step of transmitting the object.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving at the gateway device a directory of carousel objects that are available.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the directory comprises file listings organized in a hierarchical manner.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

13. A method for providing carousel objects to a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) via a gateway device, the method comprising:

receiving at the gateway device a carousel object, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast using a first protocol to the gateway device by a server device over a communications network;

converting by the gateway device the carousel object in the first protocol into a second protocol;

caching the carousel object;

receiving at the gateway device a message from the remote DHCT requesting the carousel object; and

transmitting by the gateway device the carousel object to the remote DHCT using the second protocol responsive to the gateway device receiving the message requesting the carousel object, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

14. A method for receiving carousel objects by a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) from a gateway device, the method comprising:

transmitting by the remote DHCT a message to the gateway device requesting a carousel object;

converting by the gateway device the carousel object from a first protocol into a second protocol; and

receiving by the remote DHCT the carousel object using the second protocol from the gateway device based on the transmitted message, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device via cable television network.

20. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device via a satellite television network.

21. The method of claim 14, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

22. A gateway device comprising:

logic configured to receive a message from a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT);

logic configured to convert the carousel object from a first protocol into a second protocol;

logic configured to determine whether a carousel object is to be transmitted to the remote DHCT based on the received message; and

logic configured to initiate a transmission of the carousel object using the second protocol from the gateway device to the remote DHCT in response to the logic determining that the carousel object is to be transmitted to the remote DHCT, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

23. The gateway device of claim 22, further comprising:

a memory device; and

a directory that is stored in the memory device and that lists the carousel object as being available.

24. The gateway device of claim 22, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

25. The gateway device of claim 22, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device.

26. The gateway device of claim 22, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

27. The gateway device of claim 22, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

28. The gateway device of claim 22, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

29. A remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT), comprising:

a first software application that is configured to provide a television service using data contained in a carousel object;

a second software application that is configured to request the carousel object from a gateway device and to receive, in response to the request, the carousel object from the gateway device, the gateway device converting the carousel object from a first protocol into a second protocol; and

a third software application that is configured to process the carousel object using the second protocol.

30. The remote DHCT of claim 29, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

31. The remote DHCT of claim 29, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device.

32. The remote DHCT of claim 29, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

33. The remote DHCT of claim 29, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

34. The remote DHCT of claim 29, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

35. The remote DHCT of claim 34, wherein the television service is an electronic program guide.

36. A gateway device comprising:

a broadcast carousel system (BCS) software application that obtains a carousel object that is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device using a first protocol and converts the carousel object in the first protocol into a second protocol; and

a proxy software application that receives a request for a carousel object from a Remote Digital Home Communication terminal (remote DHCT), that requests the BCS software application to obtain the carousel object based on the received request, and that initiates a transmission of the carousel object from the gateway device to the remote DHCT using the second protocol in response to receiving the request for the BCS software application to obtain the carousel object, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

37. The gateway device of claim 36, further comprising:

a memory device; and

a directory that is stored in the memory device and that lists the carousel object as being available.

38. The gateway device of claim 36, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

39. The gateway device of claim 36, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

40. The gateway device of claim 36, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

41. The gateway device of claim 36, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

42. A gateway device located at a customer premises, comprising:

memory for storing a carousel object; and

a processor that is programmed to;

process a message received from a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) requesting for the carousel object;

convert the carousel object in a first protocol into a second protocol;

determine whether the carousel object is to be transmitted to the remote DHCT based on the message received from the remote DHCT; and

initiate a transmission of the carousel object using the second protocol from the gateway device to the remote DHCT in response to determining that the carousel object is to be transmitted to the remote DHCT, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol, wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises.

43. The gateway device of claim 42, wherein the carousel object comprises software.

44. The gateway device of claim 42, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device.

45. The gateway device of claim 42, wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol.

46. The gateway device of claim 42, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels.

47. The gateway device of claim 42, wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.

48. A method for providing carousel objects to a remote digital home communication terminal (remote DHCT) via a gateway device, the method comprising:

receiving at the gateway device a message from the remote DHCT requesting a carousel object;

receiving at the gateway device a directory of carousel objects that are available, the object being listed in the directory;

receiving at the gateway device the carousel object, wherein the carousel object is repeatedly broadcast using a first protocol to the gateway device by a data server over a communications network;

caching the carousel object;

converting by the gateway device the carousel object in the first protocol into a second protocol; and

responsive to the gateway receiving the message requesting the carousel object from the remote DHCT, transmitting by the gateway device the carousel object from the gateway to the remote DHCT, the remote DHCT being capable of processing the carousel object using the second protocol;

wherein the gateway device and the remote DHCT are located at a customer premises;

wherein the first protocol is a Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) User-to-User Object Carousel protocol;

wherein the carousel object is broadcast to the gateway device over a plurality of communication channels;

wherein the communications network is a satellite television network;

wherein the directory comprises file listings organized in a hierarchical manner;

wherein the carousel object comprises electronic program guide (EPG) data.