Methods and apparatus for selecting digital interface technology for programming and data delivery

• US 8,718,100 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2006
• Issued: 05/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Markley, Jeffrey P., Hasek, Charles A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hamza, Faruk
• Assistant Examiner(s): GUADALUPE CRUZ, AIXA AMYR
• Application Number:
  US11/364,147
• Publication Number:
  US 20070204300A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,990 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 370/486
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/81 combined with telephone network over which the broadcast is continuously available
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2225 Local VOD servers
• 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 21/25833 involving client hardware characteristics, e.g. manufacturer, processing or storage capabilities allocation of resources considering hardware capabilities in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/5044; allocation of resources considering software capabilities in multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/5055
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2668 Creating a channel for a dedicated end-user group, e.g. insertion of targeted commercials based on end-user profiles information retrieval from the Internet by querying with filtering and personalisation G06F16/9535; arrangements for replacing or switching information during the broadcast H04H20/10; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; adaptation of message content in packet-switching networks H04L51/063
• 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 21/44245 Monitoring the upstream path of the transmission network, e.g. its availability, bandwidth
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6118 involving cable transmission, e.g. using a cable modem
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for selecting digital (network) interface technology for programming and data delivery over, e.g., a content-based network. In one embodiment, the network comprises an HFC cable or satellite network that includes a server process interfacing with a plurality of customer premises equipment (CPE), and/or associated client devices, each having different capabilities profiles. The server determines the one or more capabilities possessed by the CPE, and evaluates one or more program or content choices for possible delivery to that CPE based on its profile. The server generates a list of programs or content based on this evaluation, and transmits this list to the CPE, which displays the list for viewing by a user. The user is therefore offered a list of available content that is compatible with their specific configuration. A business and operational rules engine is also optionally employed to control the operation of the foregoing processes to accomplish particular business or operational goals.

Claims

1. A system for distribution of video programming on-demand, comprising:

a plurality of video signal processing devices, each of said plurality of devices having a respective plurality of network interface capabilities, and each configured to;

(i) generate a capabilities profile related at least in part to said plurality of network interface capabilities, (ii) receive video programming signals, and (iii) select an optimal network interface to be used based at least in part on one or more internal parameters; and

a video-on-demand server connected to said plurality of video signal processing devices over a network, said video-on-demand server configured to;

(i) receive individual capabilities profiles from individual ones of said plurality of video signal processing devices, (ii) identify on-demand demand video programming that is compatible with said individual ones of said plurality of devices, said identification comprising evaluation of;

data decoding capabilities; and

conditional access capabilities, (iii) transmit said compatible on-demand video to said individual ones of said plurality of devices, and (iv) transmit one or more components needed by a requesting device for compatibility when compatible on-demand video programming cannot be identified.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said identification of on-demand programming by said video-on-demand server comprises evaluation of said plurality of network interface capabilities for sufficient bandwidth for delivery of said video programming.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of video processing devices further comprises a digital processor configured to run a computer program thereon, said computer program comprising an operating system and an application component, said application component being configured to, when executed, request a capabilities profile from said at least one of said plurality of devices, and said operating system being configured to, when executed, poll at least one hardware or software module.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein said network comprises a hybrid fiber coaxial (HFC) cable television network, and at least a portion of said plurality of devices have heterogeneous network interface capabilities.

5. A method for operating a video processing device for use in a content delivery network, comprising:

polling a set of components of said video processing device for network interface capabilities and conditional access capabilities, said act of polling occurring at the video processing device;

receiving one or more network interface capabilities and conditional access capabilities in response to said polling;

generating information describing said one or more network interface capabilities; and

selecting, at said video processing device, a network interface for receipt of content based at least in part on said one or more network interface capabilities.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising transmitting a session-based protocol message to a session resource manager (SRM) located on said content delivery network remote from said video processing device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said session-based protocol message comprises:

a descriptor parameter describing a particular resource descriptor;

a descriptor length parameter; and

a data field.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein said one or more network interface capabilities comprise at least one of (i) an in-band radio frequency (RF) tuner;

(ii) a cable modem; and

(iii) a high-speed serialized bus connection.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving a list of programs available for video-on-demand viewing, said list selected based at least in part on said act of generating information;

displaying said list of programs to a user;

receiving a selection from said user;

transmitting said selection;

receiving video programming;

accessing said video programming based at least in part on one of said one or more network interface capabilities; and

displaying said video programming.

10. The method of claim 5, further comprising transmitting a message to a software process configured to control at least in part a delivery of program streams to a node within a broadcast switched architecture (BSA) network.

11. An apparatus for receipt of digital information from a network, said digital information being encoded, said apparatus comprising a microprocessor configured to run software modules, said apparatus further comprising:

a plurality of network interface components, each comprising a distinct communication channel;

an application configured to determine a network interface profile; and

an operating system configured to communicate with said plurality of network interface components in order to generate information for said network interface profile;

wherein said application is further configured to utilize at least (i) information related to conditional access capabilities of said apparatus, and (ii) information related to current network conditions, in order to select one of said plurality of network interface components; and

wherein said network interface profile comprises a prioritized list of available ones of said plurality of network interface components, said prioritization thereof based at least in part on information related to said internal parameters and said information related to said current network conditions.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said plurality of network interface components comprises a plurality of hardware-based interfaces and an associated registry.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said application is further configured to generate and transmit a network interface capability message via a session-based protocol.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said network interface components comprise one or more of:

(i) radio frequency (RF) tuners, and (ii) packetized network protocol interfaces.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising a radio frequency (RF) interface configured to receive modulated digital RE signals.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said application is rendered via an object oriented programming language.

17. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said apparatus comprises a set-top box adapted for use in a cable television network.

18. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said apparatus is at least in data communication with a Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) cable modem configured for use in a cable television network.

19. A network server apparatus, comprising:

a storage device; and

a processor in data communication with said storage device, said processor configured to run a computer program thereon, said program comprising a plurality of instructions configured to, when executed;

receive network interface profile and capabilities profile information from a plurality of network client devices;

receive a request for first content from at least two of said plurality of network client devices;

determine whether a common network interface profile exists between said at least two of said plurality of network client devices;

identify programming that is compatible with said at least two client devices; and

in response to a determination that said common network interface profile exists, utilize a bandwidth-conserving content delivery mechanism for delivery of said identified compatible programming to said at least two of said plurality of network client devices;

wherein said identified compatible programming is selected based at least in part on an evaluation of;

(i) decoding capabilities, and (ii) conditional access capabilities.

20. The server apparatus of claim 19, wherein said network server apparatus is in data communication with a cable network, and said network server further comprises a server process associated with a video-on-demand function of said cable network.

21. The server apparatus of claim 19, wherein said bandwidth-conserving content delivery mechanism comprises a multicast transmission via a packetized network protocol.

22. A method of configuring programming deliverable over a network that is available for on-demand viewing by at least one Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), said method comprising:

receiving, from said at least one CPE, first information relating to a prioritized list of available network interface options of said at least one CPE over which said programming is to be delivered, a priority of said prioritized list being determined by current network conditions;

receiving from said at least one CPE second information relating to conditional access (CA) capabilities, of said at least one CPE;

selecting at least one of a plurality of variants of said programming based at least in part on said second information; and

transmitting said selected at least one of said plurality of said variants of said programming over a first network interface based at least in part on said prioritized list;

wherein a mode associated with said transmission reduces bandwidth consumption during said transmission.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said available network interface options comprise at least one of:

(i) an in-band radio frequency (RF) tuner;

(ii) a cable modem; and

(iii) a high-speed serialized bus connection.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

receiving a list of programs available for video-on-demand viewing, said list selected based at least in part on said second information;

displaying said list of programs to a user;

receiving a selection from said user;

transmitting said user selection;

receiving video programming;

accessing said video programming based at least in part on one of said one or more network interface options; and

displaying said video programming.

25. The method of claim 22, further comprising transmitting a message to a software process configured to control at least in part a delivery of program streams to a node within a broadcast switched architecture (BSA) network.

26. The method of claim 22, wherein said prioritized list of available network interface options is transmitted via a session-based protocol message.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said session-based protocol message comprises:

a descriptor parameter describing a particular resource descriptor;

a descriptor length parameter; and

a data field.