System and method for the broadcast dissemination of time-ordered data

• US 8,726,331 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2012
• Issued: 05/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Interval Licensing LLC
• Original Assignee: Interval Licensing LLC
• Inventors: Ngo, J. Thomas, Saunders, Steven E., Rubin, Owen
• Primary Examiner(s): Huynh, An Son P
• Application Number:
  US13/619,519
• Publication Number:
  US 20130086276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 606 Days
• Field of Search: 725/86, 725/101, 725135-136, 725/104
• US Class Current: 725/135
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/70 Media network packetisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/752 adapting media to network capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/762 at the source reformatting of additional data in video distribution servers H04N21/2355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/764 at the destination reformatting of additional data in video clients H04N21/4355
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/234 Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing of video streams or manipulating encoded video stream scene graphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/26275 for distributing content or additional data in a staggered manner, e.g. repeating movies on different channels in a time-staggered manner in a near video on demand system
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47202 for requesting content on demand, e.g. video on demand
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47208 for requesting near-video-on-demand content
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6375 for requesting retransmission , e.g. of data packets lost or corrupted during transmission from serverARQ protocols H04L1/18; implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP] H04L69/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8456 by decomposing the content in the time domain, e.g. in time segments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

A stream of time-ordered data, such as a movie, is divided into multiple fragments of equal length, which are repetitively transmitted at different respective repetition rates. The fragments are reordered for transmission so that those which occur near the beginning of the original data stream are transmitted more frequently than those which occur later in the data stream. When a user enters a request to utilize the data, the individual fragments are stored upon receipt at the user'"'"'s premises, and reassembled into a contiguous stream. The ordering of the fragments is such that the wait time required before utilization of the data can begin is limited to a predetermined maximum, and at least one copy of every fragment becomes available by the time it is needed.

Claims

1. A computer readable storage device storing computer executable instructions that when executed by a computer perform a method for delivering streaming digital media, the method comprising:

dividing, using a processor, the streaming digital media into a sequence of segments;

dividing, using the processor, the sequence of segments into successive fragments,

wherein the streaming digital media includes video or audio program data;

assigning a nominal transmission time for each fragment within a segment,

wherein the nominal transmission time is based on a time interval that is a function of a length of the segment and the number of fragments in the segment;

sorting the fragments in accordance with the nominal transmission time assigned for each fragment; and

transmitting the successive fragments in the sorted order at a fixed data rate,

wherein the fixed data rate is based on a harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments,

wherein a time between transmission of each of the successive fragments is equal to the harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments, and

wherein the successive fragments are delivered for replaying the video or audio program data.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein a given segment of the successive fragments is transmitted over a period of time equal to the presentation time of all previous segments plus a predetermined wait period.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising deleting one or more fragments in at least one segment.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein transmitting the successive fragments includes transmitting the successive fragments in a manner that ensures a maximum wait period τ

before one or more televisions or display devices can commence displaying the media.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising determining an optimized bandwidth for a given wait period τ

, wherein determining an optimized bandwidth includes iteratively repeating a process including

     1) calculating locally optimal values for a first subset of segments and

     2) calculating locally optimal values for a second subset of segments.

6. A system for delivering streaming digital media, the system comprising:

means for dividing the streaming digital media into a sequence of segments;

means for dividing the sequence of segments into successive fragments,

wherein the streaming digital media includes video or audio program data;

means for assigning a nominal transmission time for each fragment within a segment,

wherein the nominal transmission time is based on a time interval that is a function of a length of the segment and the number of fragments in the segment;

means for sorting the fragments in accordance with the nominal transmission times assigned for each fragment; and

means for transmitting the successive fragments in the sorted order at a fixed data rate,

wherein the fixed data rate is based on a harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments,

wherein a time between transmission of each of the successive fragments is equal to the harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments, and

wherein the successive fragments are delivered for replaying the video or audio program data.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein a given segment of the successive fragments is transmitted over a period of time equal to the presentation time of all previous segments plus a predetermined wait period.

8. The system of claim 6, further comprising means for deleting one or more fragments in at least one segment.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein transmitting the successive fragments includes transmitting the successive fragments in a manner that ensures a maximum wait period τ

before one or more televisions or display devices can commence displaying the media.

10. The system of claim 6 further comprising means for determining an optimized bandwidth for a given wait period τ

, wherein determining an optimized bandwidth includes iteratively repeating a process including

     1) calculating locally optimal values for a first subset of segments and

     2) calculating locally optimal values for a second subset of segments.

11. A method for delivering streaming digital media, the method comprising:

dividing the streaming digital media into a sequence of segments;

dividing the sequence of segments into successive fragments, wherein the streaming digital media includes video or audio program data;

assigning a nominal transmission time for each fragment within a segment,

wherein the nominal transmission time is based on a time interval that is a function of a length of the segment and the number of fragments in the segment;

sorting the fragments in accordance with the nominal transmission times assigned for each fragment; and

transmitting the successive fragments in the sorted order at a fixed data rate,

wherein the fixed data rate is based on a harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments,

wherein a time between transmission of each of the successive fragments is equal to the harmonic mean of the time intervals for the segments, and

wherein the successive fragments are delivered for replaying the video or audio program data.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein a given segment of the successive fragments is transmitted over a period of time equal to the presentation time of all previous segments plus a predetermined wait period.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising deleting one or more fragments in at least one segment.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein transmitting the successive fragments includes transmitting the successive fragments in a manner that ensures a maximum wait period τ

before one or more televisions, or display devices can commence displaying the media.

15. The method of claim 11 further comprising determining an optimized bandwidth for a given wait period τ

, wherein determining an optimized bandwidth includes iteratively repeating a process including

     1) calculating locally optimal values for a first subset of segments and

     2) calculating locally optimal values for a second subset of segments.