Method for processing additional information related to an announced service or content in an NRT service and a broadcast receiver

• US 8,646,008 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2013
• Issued: 02/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Suh, Jongyeul, Song, Jaehyung, Kwak, Minsung, Lee, Joonhui, Choi, Inhwan, Lee, Chulsoo, Shin, Pilsup
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheleheda, James R
• Application Number:
  US13/775,851
• Publication Number:
  US 20130167172A1
• Time in Patent Office: 344 Days
• Field of Search: 725/54, 725/71, 725/32, 725/89, 709/217, 709/227, 709/229, 370/312, 370/432, 348/731, 348/426.1, 348/384.1
• US Class Current: 725/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/93 which locates resources of other pieces of information, e.g. URL [Uniform Resource Locator]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/55 Push-based network services
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2323 using file mapping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2353 specifically adapted to content descriptors, e.g. coding, compressing or processing of metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23614 Multiplexing of additional data and video streams arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information H04H20/28
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2362 Generation or processing of Service Information [SI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/237 Communication with additional data server
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/262 Content or additional data distribution scheduling, e.g. sending additional data at off-peak times, updating software modules, calculating the carousel transmission frequency, delaying a video stream transmission, generating play-lists scheduling strategies for dispatcher in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/4881; arrangements for scheduling broadcast services or broadcast-related services H04H60/06; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10; establishing a time schedule or organising the servicing of application requests H04L67/62
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4345 Extraction or processing of SI, e.g. extracting service information from an MPEG stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4348 Demultiplexing of additional data and video streams
• 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 21/4516 involving client characteristics, e.g. Set-Top-Box type, software version or amount of memory available
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6175 involving transmission via Internet broadcast-related systems characterised by the transmission system being the Internet H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64322 IP
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6437 Real-time Transport Protocol [RTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8126 involving additional data, e.g. news, sports, stocks, weather forecasts
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/85406 : involving a specific file format, e.g. MP4 format

Abstract

A method of processing additional information related to an announced service or content in a Non-Real Time (NRT) service and the broadcast receiver are disclosed herein. A method of providing a Non-Real Time (NRT) service in a broadcasting receiver includes receiving a service map table (SMT) and a first descriptor through a service signaling channel, identifying an image identifier and an image type of an image for an NRT service based upon the first descriptor, receiving the image via a flute session and displaying the image when corresponding service is played, wherein the image is logo or icon data for the NRT service. The method may further include connecting a service signaling channel, parsing the received SMT and the first descriptor, determining whether a service is the NRT service based upon the parsed SMT and storing the received image.

Claims

1. A method of transmitting a broadcast signal for a Non-Real Time (NRT) service, the method comprising:

generating the broadcast signal including the NRT service, and signaling data including an NRT Information Table (NRT-IT) describing one or more content items available for download to storage in the receiving device for signaling NRT service and signaling data further including a Service Map Table (SMT) containing service-level attributes for the NRT broadcasting, wherein the SMT includes information used as a linkage to the NRT-IT; and

transmitting the NRT service via a broadcast channel and the signaling data via a Service Signaling Channel (SSC) with a specific IP address and UDP port number,

wherein, the NRT service is delivered within IP packets, the IP packets associated with a virtual channel are identified by references in a Virtual Channel Table (VCT) and an associated Program Map Table (PMT), wherein the IP packets are carried in MPEG-2 Transport Stream using Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) Addressable Section format,

wherein a descriptor included in the SMT provides a reference to an image file in a File Delivery over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) session of the NRT service used as a service or content icon,

wherein each of the FLUTE file delivery sessions includes one or more FLUTE channels,

wherein all of the FLUTE channels in each of the FLUTE file delivery sessions have a same IP address and consecutively numbered UDP ports signaled with a single component descriptor in the SMT, and

wherein the IP packet contains the SSC.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

accessing the SSC;

parsing the received SMT and the descriptor;

determining the NRT service based upon the parsed SMT; and

storing the received image.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the descriptor is included in a service level descriptor loop of the SMT or a content level descriptor loop of the NRT-IT.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the descriptor includes a field corresponding to a FLUTE File Delivery Table (FDT) content linkage tag of the file containing the icon image.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the icon image is any one of a broadcaster logo, a channel change image, a channel logo, and a background image, and has an image format any one of JPEG and PNG.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the FLUTE session is accessed based upon any one of the received SMT and the received descriptor.

7. An apparatus for receiving a broadcast signal for a Non-Real time (NRT) service, the apparatus comprising:

a tuner configured to receive the broadcast signal including the NRT service, and signaling data including an NRT Information Table (NRT-IT) describing one or more content items available for download to storage in the receiving device for signaling NRT service and signaling data further including a Service Map Table (SMT) containing service-level attributes for the NRT broadcasting, wherein the SMT includes information used as a linkage to the NRT-IT; and

a receiving unit configured to receive the NRT service via a broadcast channel and the signaling data via a Service Signaling Channel (SSC) with a specific IP address and UDP port number,

wherein, the NRT service is delivered within IP packets, the IP packets associated with a virtual channel are identified by references in a Virtual Channel Table (VCT) and an associated Program Map Table (PMT), wherein the IP packets are carried in MPEG-2 Transport Stream using Digital Storage Media Command and Control (DSM-CC) Addressable Section format,

wherein a descriptor included in the SMT provides a reference to an image file in a File Delivery over Unidirectional Transport (FLUTE) session of the NRT service used as a service or content icon,

wherein each of the FLUTE file delivery sessions includes one or more FLUTE channels,

wherein all of the FLUTE channels in each of the FLUTE file delivery sessions have a same IP address and consecutively numbered UDP ports signaled with a single component descriptor in the SMT, and

wherein the IP packet contains the SSC.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, further comprising:

a controller configured to access the SSC;

a parser configured to parse the received SMT and the descriptor;

a receiving unit configured to receive the NRT service based upon the parsed SMT; and

a storage unit configured to store the received image.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the descriptor includes a field corresponding to a FLUTE File Delivery Table (FDT) content linkage tag of the file containing the icon image.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the descriptor is included in the service level descriptor loop of the SMT or a content level descriptor loop of the NRT-IT.

11. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the icon image is any one of a broadcaster logo, a channel change image, a channel logo, and a background image, and has an image format any one of JPEG and PNG.

12. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the FLUTE session is accessed based upon any one of the received SMT and the received descriptor.

13. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the SMT is linked to the NRT-IT and carried in the SSC, the SMT describing one or more NRT services, and the NRT-IT providing descriptive metadata about one or more content items that make up the NRT service.