Auxiliary program association table

• US 7,409,702 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2003
• Issued: 08/05/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Cao, Adrean T.
• Primary Examiner(s): HUYNH, AN SON PHI
• Application Number:
  US10/393,324
• Publication Number:
  US 20040187161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,965 Days
• Field of Search: 375/240, 37524026-24027, 370/537, 370/486, 370/487, 725/31, 725/38, 725/54, 725/110, 725/114, 725/131
• US Class Current: 725/110
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• 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

Abstract

A method of identifying programs in a digital video communication system, consistent with certain embodiment of the present invention involve generating an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT), wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to a program. The auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT are packetized and identified using a designated PID. The designated PID is encoded as private descriptor in a network information table (NIT) that is transmitted to the Set-top boxes (STB) over an out of band channel. The STBs have an out of band modem that receives a network information table (NIT). A NIT parser parses the NIT to obtain a designated program identifier (PID) for packets containing an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT). A demultiplexer extracts packets containing the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT based upon the designated PID to obtain PID values associated with programs for use in decoding and decrypting programs.

Claims

1. A method of identifying programs in a digital video communication system, comprising:

generating an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT), wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to a program;

packetizing the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT and identifying packets containing the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT using a designated PID;

encoding the designated PID as private descriptor in a network information table (NIT); and

wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are different from a conventional PAT and a conventional PMT, and, wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to at least one portion of a program encrypted with a non-legacy encryption to distinguish the at least one portion of the program encrypted with the non-legacy encryption from the at least one portion of the program encrypted with a legacy encryption.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising transmitting the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT to a decoder, and transmitting the NIT to the decoder.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are transmitted to the decoder as inband information.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the designated PID is transmitted to the decoder as out of band information.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the designated PID is listed in a second descriptor loop of the NIT.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the out of band information is transmitted to the decoder via a DOCSIS compliant modem.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the NIT further carries information needed to tune to a transport stream carrying the designated PID.

8. The method according to claim 1, carried out in a cable television system head end.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising generating the conventional program association table and the conventional program map table (PMT), wherein the conventional PAT and conventional PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to the program.

10. A computer readable storage medium storing instructions being executed on a programmed processor, carry out the method according to claim 1.

19. A computer readable storage medium storing instructions being executed on a programmed processor, carry out the method according to claim 10.

11. A method of obtaining program association information, comprising:

receiving a network information table (NIT);

parsing the NIT to obtain a designated program identifier (PID) encoded as private descriptor data for packets containing an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT);

extracting the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT to obtain PID values associated with programs; and

wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are different from a conventional PAT and a conventional PMT, and, wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to at least one portion of a program encrypted with a non-legacy encryption to distinguish the at least one portion of the program encrypted with the non-legacy encryption from the at least one portion of the proeram encrypted with a legacy encryption.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising sending information from the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT to a decoder.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are received as inband information.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the designated PID is received as out of band information.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the designated PID is listed in a second descriptor loop of the NIT.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the out of band information is received via a DOCSIS compliant modem.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein the parsing the NIT further comprises obtaining other information needed to tune to a transport stream carrying the designated PID.

18. The method according io claim 11, carried out in a television Set-top box.

20. A digital video decoder device, comprising:

a modem that receives a network information table (NIT);

a NIT parser that parses the NIT to obtain a designated program identifier (PID) encoded as private descriptor data for packets containing an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT);

a demultiplexer that extracts packets containing the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT based upon the designated PID to obtain PID values associated with programs; and

wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are different from a conventional PAT and a conventional PMT, and, wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to at least one portion of a program encrypted with a non-legacy encryption to distinguish the at least one portion of the program encrypted with the non-legacy encryption from the at least one portion of the program encrypted with a legacy encryption.

21. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, further comprising a memory for storing the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT.

22. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, further comprising a decoder that decodes video programs identified by PID values stored in the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT.

23. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are received as inband information.

24. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, wherein the modem comprises an out of band modem.

25. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, wherein the modem comprises a DOCSIS compliant modem, and wherein the NIT is received via the DOCSIS compliant modem.

26. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, wherein the designated PID is listed in a second descriptor loop of the NIT.

27. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, wherein the NIT parser further parses the NIT to obtain other information needed to tune to a transport stream carrying the designated PID.

28. The digital video decoder device according to claim 20, embodied in a television Set-top box.

29. A television Set-top box, comprising:

an out of band DOCSIS compliant modem that receives a network information table (NIT);

a NIT parser that parses the NIT to obtain a designated program identifier (PID) encoded as private descriptor data for packets containing an auxiliary program association table (PAT) and an auxiliary program map table (PMT), wherein the designated PID is listed in a second descriptor loop of the NIT, and wherein the NIT parser further parses the NIT to obtain other information needed to tune to a transport stream carrying the designated PID;

a demultiplexer that extracts packets from inband transport streams containing the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT based upon the designated PID to obtain PID values associated with programs;

a memory for storing the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT;

a decoder that decodes video programs identified by PID values stored in the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT and provides an output signal suitable for driving a television display; and

wherein the auxiliary PAT and the auxiliary PMT are different from a conventional PAT and a conventional PMT, and, wherein the auxiliary PAT and auxiliary PMT relate at least one program identifier (PID) to at least one portion of a program encrypted with a non-legacy encryption to distinguish the at least one portion of the program encrypted with the non-legacy encryption from the at least one portion of the program encrypted with a legacy encryption.