Modified electronic program guide

• US 8,347,333 B1
• Filed: 08/13/2003
• Issued: 01/01/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DIRECTV, LLC (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: The DIRECTV Group, Inc. (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Arsenault, Robert G., Leminh, Tam T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Beliveau, Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huerta, Alexander Q
• Application Number:
  US10/640,111
• Time in Patent Office: 3,429 Days
• Field of Search: 725 37- 61, 725/132, 725/140
• US Class Current: 725/44
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4424 Monitoring of the internal components or processes of the client device, e.g. CPU or memory load, processing speed, timer, counter or percentage of the hard disk space used error monitoring in general G06F11/30; arrangements for monitoring conditions of receiving stations in broadcast systems H04H60/32; diagnosis, testing or measuring for television receivers H04N17/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4435 Memory management allocation of memory to service a request G06F9/5016; addressing or allocating within memory systems or architectures G06F12/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72

Abstract

The present invention enables a broadcaster to vary the time and the descriptive information in a program guide on a per-channel basis. A priority ranking system of the channels allows the preparation of multiple versions of a program guide in order to fit the guide into the memory space allocated in a receiver. When constructing the program guide, the algorithm of the present invention fits the longest title variation allowed while still keeping the total size of the guide product within space constraints supported by the receiver.

Claims

1. A method for generating an electronic program guide, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) providing multiple selectable versions of titles for programs that are viewable on a plurality of channels, wherein the said selectable versions have of said titles of have varying character lengths;

(b) preliminarily determining which of said channels are to be selectively included in said electronic program guide;

(c) assigning a priority classification to each of said channels that were preliminary determined to be included in said electronic program guide;

(d) preliminary selecting long-title versions of said titles from said selectable versions of said titles for programs that are viewable on said channels that were preliminarily determined to be included in said electronic program guide;

(e) preliminarily generating said electronic program guide so that said electronic program guide preliminarily includes (i) each of said channels that were preliminarily determined to be included in said electronic program guide and (ii) each of said long-title versions of said titles for said programs that are viewable on said channels that were preliminarily determined to be included in said electronic program guide; and

(f) modifying and regenerating said electronic program guide as necessary so as to reduce the amount of memory space taken up by said channels and said titles preliminarily included in said electronic program guide and thereby fit said electronic program guide in the fixed memory space of a receiver;

wherein step (a) is at least partially accomplished by creating a database of that includes said multiple selectable versions of said titles;

wherein the said database contains a plurality of versions of a title for each of said programs that are viewable on the said plurality of channels, and each of said versions of a title has a different number of characters and hence a different length;

wherein step (c) is at least partially accomplished by assigning a low, medium, or high priority to each of said channels and storing each of said channels in a list corresponding to a priority classification of 1, 2, . . . N, thereby defining LIST1, LIST2, . . . LISTN respectively;

said method further comprising the steps of;

setting a first byte limit for a program title;

setting a second byte limit for a program title;

generating a first version of an said electronic program guide using all long-title versions;

determining if the said first version of an said electronic program guide is within an allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said first version of an said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said first version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a second version of an said electronic program guide when the said first version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said second version being generated using;

(a) long-title versions that are compressed under the said first byte limit;

(b) a medium-title version when long-title version is greater than the said first byte limit and the medium-title version is available and compresses below the said second byte limit; and

(c) a short-title version when the said medium-title version is greater than the said second byte limit;

determining if the said second version of an said electronic program guide is within an said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said second version of an said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said second version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a third version of an said electronic program guide when the said second version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said third version generated using;

(a) a shortest available title, after compression, for channels found in LIST1; and

(b) using titles selected by the said second version for channels not found in LIST1;

determining if the said third version of an said electronic program guide is within the said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said third version of the said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said third version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a fourth version of an said electronic program guide when the said third version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said fourth version generated using;

(a) a shortest available title, after compression, for channels in LIST1 or LIST2; and

(b) a title selected in the said second version for channels not listed in LIST1 or LIST2;

determining if the said fourth version of an said electronic program guide is within the said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said fourth version of the said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said fourth version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a fifth version of an said electronic program guide when the said fourth version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said fifth version generated using;

(a) a shortest available title for a current program and a next program for channels identified in LIST1;

(b) omitting any other program identifiers for channels listed in LIST1; and

(c) a shortest available title, after compression, for channels not listed in LIST1;

determining if the said fifth version of an said electronic program guide is within the said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said fifth version of the said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said fifth version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a sixth version of an said electronic program guide when the said fifth version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said sixth version generated using;

(a) no titles for programs on channels found in LIST1 or LIST2; and

(b) a shortest available title, after compression, for channels not found in LIST1 or LIST2;

determining if the said sixth version of an said electronic program guide is within the said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said sixth version of the said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said sixth version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a seventh version of an said electronic program guide when the said sixth version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said seventh version generated using;

(a) no titles for programs on channels identified in LIST1, LIST2, or LIST3; and

(b) a shortest available title, after compression, for channels not identified in LIST1, LIST2, or LIST3;

determining if the said seventh version of an said electronic program guide is within the said allowable memory size limit;

storing and displaying the said seventh version of the said electronic program guide at a said receiver when the said seventh version is within the said allowable memory size limit;

generating a an eighth version of an said electronic program guide when the said seventh version exceeds the said allowable memory size limit, the said eighth version generated using no titles for any channels; and

storing and displaying the said eighth version of the said electronic program guide at the said receiver.