Information descriptor and extended information descriptor data structures for digital television signals

• US 7,877,769 B2
• Filed: 04/17/2001
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Corl, Mark T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh; Son P
• Application Number:
  US09/835,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20020035726A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,570 Days
• Field of Search: 725 39- 41, 725109-110, 725/112, 725/43, 725/45
• US Class Current: 725/39
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2665 Gathering content from different sources, e.g. Internet and satellite
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/426 Internal components of the client ; Characteristics thereof H04N5/44 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/431 Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73

Abstract

Disclosed is a type of meta data structure that provides data and/or or a link to such data that is used by an EPG generator in a DTV receiver to display visually-compelling information about an event. Such information can include: an icon associated with the broadcaster of the event and/or the source of the event; a graphic representing a rating of potentially-objectionable content in the event; a still image representative of or having a relation to the event; a video excerpt of or having a relation to the event; an advertisement related to the event, its broadcaster and/or its source; etc.

Claims

1. A digital television (DTV) receiver comprising:

a receiver receiving digital television (DTV) stream containing program and system information protocol (PSIP) table, the PSIP table containing an event information table (EIT) that carries a program schedule for a virtual channel, the EIT including a genre descriptor, the genre descriptor comprising;

a descriptor tag field identifying the descriptor as a genre descriptor;

a descriptor length field, which is an 8-bit unsigned integer, specifying a length, in bytes, of fields which immediately follow the descriptor length field to an end of the genre descriptor, wherein the fields include;

a category selection code, the category selection code being an attribute code value for an associated event in the DTV stream, the attribute code value specifying a basic genre or category type or detail attribute for the associated event in the DTV stream, and the attribute code value matching a value for the basic genre or category type or detail attribute in a categorical genre code assignments table defined in Advanced Television Standards Committee (ATSC) A/65 standard; and

wherein the genre descriptor accommodates a plural attribute code values such that the receiver receives the plural attribute code values sequentially without intervention, and each attribute code value is defined in the categorical genre code assignments table that is ordered from basic genre or category type to detail attribute, and the genre descriptor references entries in the categorical genre code assignments table, and when a plurality of attribute code values are included in the genre descriptor, the basic genre or category type or the detail attribute code values are specified by 8-bit unsigned integer and at least one attribute code value is specifying a basic genre.

3. The DTV of claim 1, wherein the receiver generates an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) as a function of at least one attribute code value.

4. The DTV of claim 1, wherein the basic genre or category type attribute comprises at least one of education, entertainment, movie, news, religion, and sports.

2. A digital television (DTV) transmitter comprising:

a PSIP encoder generating an event information table (EIT), the EIT being inserted in a digital television (DTV) stream, the EIT carrying a program schedule for a virtual channel, the EIT including a genre descriptor, the genre descriptor comprising;

a descriptor tag field identifying the descriptor as a genre descriptor;

a descriptor length field, which is an 8-bit unsigned integer, specifying a length, in bytes, of fields which immediately follow the descriptor length field to an end of the genre descriptor, wherein the fields include;

a category selection code, the category selection code being an attribute code value for an associated event in the DTV stream, the attribute code value specifying a basic genre or category type or detail attribute for the associated event in the DTV stream, and the attribute code value matching a value for the basic genre or category type or detail attribute in a categorical genre code assignments table defined in Advanced Television Standards Committee (ATSC) A/65 standard; and

wherein the genre descriptor accommodates a plural attribute code values such that the transmitter transmits the plural attribute code values sequentially without intervention, and each attribute code value is defined in the categorical genre code assignments table that is ordered from basic genre or category type to detail attribute, and the genre descriptor references entries in the categorical genre code assignments table, and when a plurality of attribute code values are included in the genre descriptor, the basic genre or category type or the detail attribute code values are specified by 8-bit unsigned integer and at least one attribute code value is specifying a basic genre.

5. The DTV transmitter of claim 2, wherein the basic genre or category type attribute comprises at least one of education, entertainment, movie, news, religion, and sports.