Sub-program avoidance redirection for broadcast receivers

• US 7,400,364 B2
• Filed: 04/26/2005
• Issued: 07/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Daedalus Blue LLC
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Walker, Keith Raymond, Handy-Bosma, John Hans, Chen, Yen-Fu, Sun, Nancy T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ometz; David
• Assistant Examiner(s): DESIR, JEAN WICEL
• Application Number:
  US11/114,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20060238656A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,176 Days
• Field of Search: 348/731, 348/732, 348/733, 348/725, 348/729, 348/700, 348/558, 348/553, 348/460, 348/461, 348/465, 725/36, 725/22, 725/42, 725/38, 725/32, 725/25, 704/231, 704/246, 704/251, 386/46, 382/229
• US Class Current: 348/731
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4263 involving specific tuning arrangements, e.g. two tuners
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4383 Accessing a communication channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• 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 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/50 Tuning indicators; Automatic tuning control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

A system for automatically tuning a primary broadcast receiver using a secondary broadcast receiver to receive a first broadcast signal corresponding to a source of an origin program, one or more program transition detectors to monitor first broadcast signal tuned by the secondary broadcast receiver to determine and signal a transition from a non-original program content to origin program content while a user views or hears alternate programming from a primary broadcast receiver, and automatically tuning of the primary broadcast receiver to the first broadcast signal upon detection by the program transition detector that one or more of user-specific tune conditions have been met.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a primary broadcast tuner and a secondary broadcast tuner in a broadcast television receiver, said primary broadcast tuner being under user control initially to view a first channel or signal source, said secondary broadcast tuner configured to monitor said first channel or signal source subsequent to said user selecting to surf alternate channels and signal sources using said primary broadcast tuner, said secondary broadcast receiver configured to detect an initial transition in content from an initial broadcast program to a sub-program, wherein said sub-program is content unrelated to said initial broadcast program transmitted from said first channel or signal source

a plurality of program transition detectors cooperative with said secondary broadcast tuner and configured to to detect a return from one or more sub-programs to said initial broadcast program, said detectors comprising;

an elapsed timer for a fixed period of time,

an elapsed timer for an integral multiple of a fixed period of time,

a volume change detector,

a vocabulary change detector monitoring closed captioning text,

a vocabulary change detector using voice recognition to monitor an audio program,

a V-chip ratings indicator change detector,

a scene-based program segment detector, and

a detector employing an interprogram dead frame detector;

a set of user-specified return from surfing automatic retuning conditions;

a tuner controller configured to, upon user activation, enable said secondary broadcast receiver and program transition detector to begin said monitoring, to allow surfing of channels and signal sources by a user, and to automatically tune said primary broadcast receiver to said first broadcast signal upon detection by said program transition detector that one or more of said user-specific tune conditions have been met, said tuner controller also configured to insert an alert tone or message into an audible output of the primary receiver upon said tuning action.