Method and apparatus for injecting information assets into a content stream

• US 8,553,687 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2011
• Issued: 10/08/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Comcast IP Holdings I LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Comcast IP Holdings I LLC (Comcast Corporation)
• Inventors: Bertram, Michael C., LaRooca, Tobie J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sam, Phirin
• Application Number:
  US13/005,116
• Publication Number:
  US 20110103380A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,000 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/389
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/10 Arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast or the distribution
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/25 Arrangements for updating broadcast information or broadcast-related information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23611 Insertion of stuffing data into a multiplex stream, e.g. to obtain a constant bitrate synchronisation arrangements in time-division multiplex systems using bit stuffing for systems with different or fluctuating information rates H04J3/073
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/238 Interfacing the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. adapting the transmission rate of a video stream to network bandwidth; Processing of multiplex streams hybrid fiber coaxial [HFC] networks for downstream channel allocation for video distribution H04L12/2801; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00; scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23805 Controlling the feeding rate to the network, e.g. by controlling the video pump
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2389 Multiplex stream processing, e.g. multiplex stream encrypting
• 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 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

A method and apparatus for transport encoded asset data and content data, multiplexing the transport encoded content data with a plurality of NULL transport packets to provide “place holder” for the asset data transport packets, and replacing the NULL transport packets with asset data transport packets prior to transmitting the multiplexed transport stream to a set top box.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing asset packets in a memory, wherein the asset packets comprise at least one of service information or offer information;

receiving an indication of an amount of bandwidth to reserve for the asset packets;

generating a transport stream comprising content packets and place holder packets, wherein said generating includes interspersing the place holder packets with the content packets such that the amount of bandwidth is reserved in the transport stream for the asset packets;

generating mapping data indicative of one or more locations of the place holder packets within the transport stream;

finding, using the mapping data, a location of a first place holder packet within the transport stream; and

replacing the first place holder packet with at least one of the asset packets.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the replacing is in accordance with an asset injection rate.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the asset injection rate is an asset rate injection (ARI), said ARI defining a rate of place holder packet replacement.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the asset injection rate is an asset injection count (AIC), said AIC defining a number of times an asset packet is inserted into the transport stream.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said interspersing is in accordance with a pattern determined at a time the transport stream was generated.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the pattern is dependent upon the amount of bandwidth such that the transport stream is sufficient to support transmission of the asset packets and the content packets over a network.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the content packets comprise video content.

8. A method, comprising:

receiving a transport stream, wherein the transport stream includes one or more place holder packets interspersed with content packets dependent upon a bandwidth requirement of asset packets, wherein the asset packets comprise at least one of service information or offer information;

finding, by a computing device, a first place holder packet within the transport stream using mapping data indicative of place holder packet locations within the transport stream; and

replacing the first place holder packet with at least one of the asset packets.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

generating the mapping data indicative of place holder packet locations within the transport stream.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein determining that the first place holder packet should be replaced is in accordance with an asset injection rate.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the asset injection rate is an asset rate injection (ARI), said ARI defining a rate of place holder packet replacement.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the asset injection rate is an asset injection count (AIC), said AIC defining a number of times an asset packet is inserted into the transport stream.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more place holder packets are interspersed in the transport stream according to a pattern determined at a time the transport stream was generated.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the pattern is dependent upon the amount of bandwidth such that the transport stream is sufficient to support transmission of the asset packets and the content packets over a network.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein the content packets comprise video content.

16. The method of claim 8, wherein information of the asset packets enables presentation of menus.

17. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory for storing asset packets comprising at least one of service information or offer information; and

a processor configured to;

receive a transport stream, said transport stream including place holder packets interspersed with content packets dependent upon a bandwidth requirement of the asset packets;

find, using mapping data indicative of place holder packet locations within the transport stream, a first place holder packet within the transport stream, and

replace the first place holder packet with at least one of the asset packets.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the place holder packets are interspersed according to a pattern determined at a time the transport stream was generated, and the bandwidth requirement is selected to support transmission of the asset packets and the content packets over a network.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to:

generate the mapping data indicative of place holder packet locations within the transport stream.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the content packets comprise video content.