Method and apparatus for providing simplified peer-to-peer recording

• US 7,827,578 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2004
• Issued: 11/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Madison Patent Holdings (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Inventors: Le Fevre, Chad Andrew, Tenbarge, James Duane, Mears, Mark Gilmore, Hawkins, Bret David
• Primary Examiner(s): Koenig; Andrew Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mendoza; Junior O
• Application Number:
  US10/578,952
• Publication Number:
  US 20070124751A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,184 Days
• Field of Search: 725/87, 725/89, 725/59, 386 95- 96, 386125-126
• US Class Current: 725/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4135 external recorder interface circuits between an apparatus for recording television signals and a television receiver H04N5/775
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43622 Interfacing an external recording device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43632 involving a wired protocol, e.g. IEEE 1394 high-speed IEEE 1394 serial bus H04L12/40052
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/458 Scheduling content for creating a personalised stream, e.g. by combining a locally stored advertisement with an incoming stream; Updating operations, e.g. for OS modules ; time-related management operations arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or during the distribution H04H20/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/632 using a connection between clients on a wide area network, e.g. setting up a peer-to-peer communication via Internet for retrieving video segments from the hard-disk of other client devices broadcast-related systems characterised by transmission among terminal devices H04H60/80; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/781 on disks or drums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction

Abstract

A television apparatus having digital serial bus ports allows a user to select a user-designated digital video content source input such as a digital tuner of the television apparatus and digital serial bus compliant components connected to the television apparatus via the digital serial bus ports of the television apparatus, and to cause digital content from the user-designated digital content source device to be recorded onto a digital recording device connected to the television apparatus via the digital serial bus ports. The present invention allows a user to continuously record digital content onto a digital recording device (e.g. an AVHDD), whether from the TV'"'"'s digital tuner or from another digital serial bus compliant device in a peer to peer arrangement. The connection is always recording, but allows the user to select or designate a digital (i.e. MPEG2) source (i.e. the TV tuner or another digital serial bus compliant device), in addition to displaying the selected content.

Claims

1. A method for operating a television apparatus having a digital serial bus connection and one or more other connections to enable a recording function, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving, by the television apparatus, a user input;

detecting, by the television apparatus, if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available in response to the user input;

if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available, causing, by the television apparatus, a digital recording device to record digital content provided from the video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections in response to the user input;

if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is not available, detecting, by the television apparatus, if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available;

if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available, performing steps comprising;

establishing, by the television apparatus, a peer-to-peer connection between the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device in response to the user input; and

causing, by the television apparatus, the digital recording device to record digital content provided from the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection in response to the user input, wherein data is directly transferred between the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user input includes a user pressing a single key of a remote control device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the digital serial bus comprises an IEEE 1394 compliant bus.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

causing the digital recording device to continuously record video content provided from a tuning device of the television apparatus in response to user selection of the tuning device as a designated video input source device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the causing step comprises causing the digital recording device to continuously record the video content provided from the tuning device of the television apparatus into a predefined buffer size of a storage medium of the digital recording device.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of displaying video content stored on the digital recording device on a display device associated with the television apparatus in response to user selection of the digital recording device as a designated video input source device.

7. A television apparatus having a digital serial bus connection and one or more other connections, the television apparatus comprising:

first means for receiving a user input;

second means for detecting if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available in response to the user input;

wherein if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available, the second means causes a digital recording device to record digital content provided from the video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections in response to the user input;

wherein if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is not available, the second means detects if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available;

wherein if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available, the second means enables steps comprising;

establishing a peer-to-peer connection between the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device in response to the user input; and

causing the digital recording device to continuously record digital content provided from the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection in response to the user input, wherein data is directly transferred between the video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device.

8. The television apparatus of claim 7, wherein the user input includes a user pressing a single key of a remote control device.

9. The television apparatus of claim 8, wherein the digital serial bus comprises an IEEE 1394 compliant bus.

10. The television apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second means comprises means for causing the digital recording device to continuously record video content from a tuning device of the television apparatus in response to user selection of the tuning device as a designated video input source device.

11. The television apparatus of claim 10, wherein the means for causing causes the digital recording device to continuously record the video content from the tuning device of the television apparatus into a predefined buffer size of a storage medium of the digital recording device.

12. The television apparatus of claim 8, further comprising means for displaying video content stored on the digital recording device in response to user selection of the digital recording device as a designated video input source device.

13. A method for operating a television apparatus having a digital serial bus connection and one or more other connections to enable a recording function, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving, by the television apparatus, a user input;

in response to the user input, detecting, by the television apparatus, if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available;

if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections is available, causing, by the television apparatus, a digital recording device to record digital content provided from the video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections in response to the user input;

if a video input source device corresponding to one of the other connections by the television a apparatus, if a video input source device is not available, detecting, by the television apparatus, if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available;

if a video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection is available, performing steps comprising;

establishing, by the television apparatus, a peer-to-peer connection between the digital video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device in response to the user input;

displaying, by the television apparatus, digital content provided from the digital video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection on a display device associated with the television apparatus in response to the user input; and

causing, by the television apparatus, the digital recording device to continuously record the digital content provided from the digital video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection in response to the user input, wherein data is directly transferred between the digital video input source device corresponding to the digital serial bus connection and the digital recording device.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of:

causing the digital recording device to continuously record video content from a digital tuning device of the television apparatus in response to user selection of the digital tuning device as a designated digital video input source device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the causing step comprises causing the digital recording device to continuously record the video content from the digital tuning device of the television apparatus into a predefined buffer size of a storage medium of the digital recording device.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the user input includes a user pressing a single key of a remote control device.