Tuner sharing video recorder system architecture

• US 8,116,611 B2
• Filed: 09/17/2003
• Issued: 02/14/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Aptiv Digital Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Bumgardner, James, Krakirian, Haig H
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thai
• Assistant Examiner(s): DANG, HUNG Q
• Application Number:
  US10/605,246
• Publication Number:
  US 20040156614A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,072 Days
• Field of Search: 386/48, 386/83, 386/291, 386/292, 386/293, 386/297, 725/58, 725/80, 725/49, 725/151
• US Class Current: 386/292
• 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 21/443 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 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a shared tuner video recorder system architecture. In one embodiment, multiple set-top boxes are networked and configured to share tuners with each other. If a specific set-top box has no tuners available to schedule a show, it attempts to schedule the show on the tuner of another set-top box in the network.

Claims

1. A video recorder configured to solve a tuner conflict, the video recorder comprising:

a plurality of television tuners configured to receive a plurality of shows;

a storage device coupled to the plurality of television tuners, the storage device being configured to store a plurality of the received shows; and

a conflict manager configured to;

maintain a list of shows that are scheduled for storage on the storage device using the plurality of television tuners;

receive a request to schedule the storage of an additional show, wherein the additional show spans a plurality of timeslots;

determine that there is a tuner conflict based on the maintained list of shows when the number of shows that are scheduled for storage during at least one of the plurality of timeslots equals the number of available television tuners;

generate a plurality of solutions to the tuner conflict without further action by a user, each solution comprising a subset of the shows in the maintained list, by;

selecting, for each of the plurality of timeslots, a single one of the shows in the maintained list that is scheduled for the given timeslot;

generating a conflict list that includes the selected shows, wherein the conflict list includes only one selected show for each of the plurality of timeslots;

generating a plurality of candidate solutions, each candidate solution comprising a subset of the shows in the conflict list;

determining, for each of the plurality of candidate solutions, whether removal of the subset of the shows from the maintained list solves the tuner conflict; and

selecting one of the plurality of candidate solutions determined to solve the tuner conflict; and

initiate the storage of the additional show and each of the shows in the maintained list except for the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

2. The video recorder of claim 1, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to determine an availability of at least one other tuner in a network of tuners by querying the network for another available tuner.

3. The video recorder of claim 2, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to initiate the storage of shows using the at least one other tuner in the network of tuners.

4. The video recorder of claim 1, wherein each of the shows in the maintained list has an assigned priority, and wherein the conflict manager is configured to select the single one of the shows for the given timeslot by comparing the priorities associated with the shows in the maintained list that are scheduled for the given timeslot and selecting the show with the highest priority based on the comparison.

5. The video recorder of claim 4, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to establish the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows by comparing the length of the one show to each of the other shows in the maintained list.

6. The video recorder of claim 4, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to establish the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows based on whether the show was scheduled for recording manually or automatically.

7. The video recorder of claim 4, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to establish the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows based on whether the one show is currently being recorded to the storage device.

8. The video recorder of claim 1, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to cancel the recording of each of the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

9. The video recorder of claim 1, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to provide the user with the opportunity to cancel at least one show from one of the plurality of solutions.

10. The video recorder of claim 1, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to search through an interactive program guide to determine if one of the shows in the maintained list is available to record at a later time.

11. The video recorder of claim 10, wherein the conflict manager is further configured to reschedule the recording of the program to the later time based on the determination.

12. A method for solving a tuner conflict, the method comprising:

receiving a plurality of shows on a plurality of television tuners;

maintaining a list of shows that are scheduled to be stored on a storage device, the storage device being coupled to the plurality of television tuners and configured to store a plurality of the received shows;

receiving a request to schedule the storage of an additional show, wherein the additional show spans a plurality of timeslots;

determining that there is a tuner conflict based on the maintained list of shows when the number of shows that are scheduled for storage during at least one of the plurality of timeslots equals the number of available television tuners;

generating a plurality of solutions to the tuner conflict without further action by a user, each solution comprising a subset of the shows in the maintained list, by;

selecting, for each of the plurality of timeslots, a single one of the shows in the maintained list that is scheduled for the given timeslot;

generating a conflict list that includes the selected shows, wherein the conflict list includes only one selected show for each of the plurality of timeslots;

generating a plurality of candidate solutions, each candidate solution comprising a subset of the in the conflict list;

determining, for each of the plurality of candidate solutions, whether removal of the subset of the shows from the maintained list solves the tuner conflict; and

selecting one of the plurality of candidate solutions determined to solve the tuner conflict; and

initiating the storage of the additional show and each of the shows in the maintained list except for the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising determining an availability of at least one other tuner in a network of tuners by querying the network for another available tuner.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising initiating the storage of shows using the at least one other tuner in the network of tuners.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein each of the shows in the maintained list has an assigned priority, and wherein selecting the single one of the shows for the given timeslot comprises comparing the priorities associated with the shows in the maintained list that are scheduled for the given timeslot and selecting the show with the highest priority based on the comparison.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows is established by comparing the length of the one show to each of the other shows in the maintained list.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows is established based on whether the show was scheduled for recording manually or automatically.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows is established based on whether the one show is currently being recorded to the storage device.

19. The method of claim 12, further comprising cancelling the recording of each of the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

20. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing the user with the opportunity to cancel at least one show from one of the plurality of solutions.

21. The method of claim 12, wherein determining that there is a tuner conflict further comprises determining if there is a conflict between a plurality of series.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising selecting at least one solution if at least one show in the at least one solution is part of the series and is a repeat.

23. Non-transitory computer readable storage media comprising instructions for solving a tuner conflict by:

receiving a plurality of shows on a plurality of television tuners;

maintaining a list of shows that are scheduled to be stored on a storage device, the storage device being coupled to the plurality of television tuners and configured to store a plurality of the received shows;

receiving a request to schedule the storage of an additional show, wherein the additional show spans a plurality of timeslots;

determining that there is a tuner conflict based on the maintained list of shows when the number of shows that are scheduled for storage during at least one of the plurality of timeslots equals the number of available television tuners;

generating a plurality of solutions to the tuner conflict without further action by a user, each solution comprising a subset of the shows in the maintained list, by;

selecting, for each of the plurality of timeslots, a single one of the shows in the maintained list that is scheduled for the given timeslot;

generating a conflict list that includes the selected shows, wherein the conflict list includes only one selected show for each of the plurality of timeslots;

generating a plurality of candidate solutions, each candidate solution comprising a subset of the shows in the conflict list;

determining, for each of the plurality of candidate solutions, whether removal of the subset of the shows from the maintained list solves the tuner conflict; and

selecting one of the plurality of candidate solutions determined to solve the tuner conflict; and

initiating the storage of the additional show and each of the shows in the maintained list except for the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

24. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, further comprising instructions for determining an availability of at least one other tuner in a network of tuners by querying the network for another available tuner.

25. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 24, further comprising instructions for initiating the storage of shows using the at least one other tuner in the network of tuners.

26. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, wherein each of the shows in the maintained list has an assigned priority, and wherein selecting the single one of the shows for the given timeslot comprises comparing the priorities associated with the shows in the maintained list that are scheduled for the given timeslot and selecting the show with the highest priority based on the comparison.

27. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 26, further comprising instructions for establishing the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows based on whether the one show is currently being recorded to the storage device.

28. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 26, further comprising instructions for establishing the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows by comparing the length of the one show to each of the other shows in the maintained list.

29. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 26, further comprising instructions for establishing the priority associated with one show in the maintained list of shows based on whether the show was scheduled for recording manually or automatically.

30. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, further comprising instructions for cancelling the recording of each of the subset of shows in the selected one of the plurality of candidate solutions.

31. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, further comprising instructions for providing the user with the opportunity to cancel at least one show from one of the plurality of solutions.

32. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 23, further comprising instructions for determining that there is a tuner conflict by determining if there is a conflict between a plurality of series.

33. The non-transitory computer readable storage media of claim 32, further comprising instructions for selecting at least one solution if at least one show in the at least one solution is part of the series and is a repeat.