Apparatus for and method of executing customized interactive computing services in a broadband network environment

• US 7,613,790 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2002
• Issued: 11/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fourthwall Media Incorporated
• Original Assignee: BIAP Systems, Inc. (Fourthwall Media Incorporated)
• Inventors: Wiecek, John J. Jr., Lent, Kelly F., Dudar, M. Ellen, Ye, Aaron Y., Slothouber, Louis P.
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, VIET DUY
• Application Number:
  US10/173,565
• Publication Number:
  US 20030004961A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,695 Days
• Field of Search: 709/217, 709/219, 709/224, 709/238, 709/223, 709/225, 709/250
• US Class Current: 709/219
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/30 Profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/565 Conversion or adaptation of application format or content adding application control or application functional data H04L67/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/567 Integrating service provisioning from a plurality of service providers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23106 involving caching operations prefetching while addressing of a memory level in which the access to the desired data or data block requires associative addressing means within memory systems or architectures G06F12/0862; caching at an intermediate stage in a data network H04L67/568
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23614 Multiplexing of additional data and video streams arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information H04H20/28
• 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 21/2402 Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26266 for determining content or additional data repetition rate, e.g. of a file in a DVB carousel according to its importance arrangements for broadcast or for distribution of identical information repeatedly in broadcast distribution systems H04H20/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26291 for providing content or additional data updates, e.g. updating software modules, stored at the client deployment, distribution, installation, update of software G06F8/65; error detection or correction during software upgrading G06F11/1433; arrangements for updating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/25
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/422 Input-only peripherals , i.e. input devices connected to specially adapted client devices, e.g. global positioning system [GPS] input devices also receiving signals from specially adapted client devices H04N21/4104
• 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 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4786 : e-mailing message switching systems, e.g. electronic mail systems H04L51/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 : IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8173 : End-user applications, e.g. Web browser, game
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8543 : using a description language, e.g. Multimedia and Hypermedia information coding Expert Group [MHEG], eXtensible Markup Language [XML] information retrieval of semistructured data, the underlying structure being taken into account, e.g. mark-up language structure data G06F16/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 : Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Apparatus for and method of executing customized interactive computing services in a broadband network environment. A device on the broadband network is capable of retrieving user-defined data over the network and format and display it on an associated display along with data broadcast over the broadband network. The device may be customer premises equipment such as a set-top-box, gaming console, or home gateway connected to the broadband network. In the case of a set-top-box, the broadcast data would be television programming. The device is preferably capable of retrieving data from a source on the internet. Retrieval and formatting are preferably carried out by compact software agents which are sent to the device through the network to be stored in and to execute on the device.

Claims

1. A system for providing customizable interactive television service using a broadband network, said system comprising:

a plurality of CPE devices, said plurality of CPE devices being configured to implement at least one customizable interactive computer service, to bi-directionally communicate using an IP protocol over a broadband network to request, based on user supplied criteria, information from data sources connected to external computer networks, said information supplied in response to the request, to process the retrieved information, and to internally generate, format and display graphical elements representing at least a portion of the processed retrieved information locally on a television display device, wherein each of the plurality of CPE devices comprises a software application, wherein the software application performs substantially all computational tasks required to implement said at least one customizable interactive computer service, wherein performing substantially all computational tasks comprises;

retrieving data indicative of the customizable interactive computer service from at least one external data source communicatively coupled to said broadband network, analyzing the retrieved data, and integrating the retrieved data in the customizable interactive computer service, and wherein said software application is adapted to be personalized by a user; and

a remote server computer configured to provide persistent storage services to each of said plurality of CPE devices; and

a remote server computer to optimize network bandwidth utilization, said remote server computer is configured to store customized application preferences for the plurality of CPE devices, wherein said customized application preferences are used to provide statistical data that is used to configure a bandwidth optimization service.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said broadband network environment is a digital cable television environment.

3. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said broadband network environment is a digital satellite television environment.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said CPE has no persistent storage.

5. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said broadband network environment is a game console network environment.

6. A system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said broadband network environment is a home gateway environment.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the graphical elements are animated.

8. A system for interactive television content distribution using customer premises equipment having a capability to internally generate, format and display graphics, the system comprising:

a server connected to a broadband network;

a plurality of local user devices for customizable two-way interaction with said server over said broadband network, each of said plurality of local user devices being connectable to a television display respectively and being adapted to cause said television display to show content broadcast over said broadband network to each of said plurality of local user devices respectively, each of said plurality of local user devices including a data structure representing a software application which, when executed, enables each of said plurality of local user devices to interface with said broadband network to provide, respectively, at least one customizable interactive computer service in response to a user request, each of the plurality of local user devices configured to be able to internally generate, format and display graphics elements reflecting said at least one customizable interactive computer service respectively, wherein internally formatting graphics elements comprises;

managing the graphical elements to provide one or more levels of transparency, user-customizable regions and scrolling functionality, and wherein said plurality of local user devices are capable of performing substantially all computational tasks required to implement said at least one customizable interactive computer service, and wherein the software application of each said plurality of local user devices is adapted to be personalized by a user respectively; and

a remote support server connected to the broadband network, wherein the remote support server is configured to provide support services to augment capabilities of said plurality of local user devices, to provide remote persistent storage services for said plurality of local user devices, and to store preference data for respective users of said plurality of local user devices.

9. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said at least one customizable interactive computer service comprises customizable retrieval of data from internet, wherein the customization is performed locally in the plurality of local user devices.

10. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the support server is configured to optimize bandwidth utilization of the broadband network.

11. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said support server is further configured for storing customized application preferences.

12. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said support server is further configured to provide data carousel services to repeatedly broadcast out carousel data to said plurality of devices simultaneously.

13. The system as claimed in claim 12, wherein said carousel data is selected based at least in part on said preference data.

14. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein each of said plurality of devices is a CPE device.

15. The system as claimed in claim 14, wherein said CPE device is configured to use an IP protocol to upload customized preferences data to said support server after a user makes changes to said customized preferences data, and to download said customized preferences data from said support server.

16. The system as claimed in claim 14, wherein said CPE device is additionally connected to an external IP-based network through said broadband network.

17. The system as claimed in claim 16, wherein said external IP-based network is additionally connected to a plurality of network data sources.

18. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network is a wired network.

19. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network is a wireless network.

20. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises a cable television network.

21. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises a satellite television network.

22. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises a local area network (LAN).

23. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises a wide area network (WAN).

24. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises an analog telephone network.

25. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises a digital telephone network.

26. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network comprises the Internet.

27. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein said broadband network is capable of carrying TCP/IP network traffic.