Block troubleshooting

• US 8,832,764 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2011
• Issued: 09/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Clark, Stephen John
• Primary Examiner(s): Shang, Annan
• Application Number:
  US13/293,602
• Publication Number:
  US 20130120590A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,034 Days
• Field of Search: 725/93, 725/107, 725/116, 709/221, 709/222
• US Class Current: 725/116
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/004 for digital television systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17309 Transmission or handling of upstream communications

Abstract

A system may include a media content processing subsystem associated with a subscriber. The media content processing subsystem may be configured to scan at least a subset of channels of a media broadcast to create a spectrum block map; determine a spectrum block of a channel of a media broadcast indicated as being a troubled channel; and identify, according to the spectrum block map, at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block of the troubled channel.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a media content processing subsystem associated with a subscriber and configured to;

scan at least a subset of channels of a media broadcast to create a spectrum block map;

determine a spectrum block of a channel of a media broadcast indicated as being a troubled channel; and

identify, according to the spectrum block map, at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block of the troubled channel.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to scan the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block to determine whether at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block is also a troubled channel.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to scan adjacent channels to the channels of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block to determine whether the adjacent channels outside of the spectrum block of the troubled channel are also troubled channels.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to determine, based on whether the at least one additional channel is also a troubled channel, whether a trouble ticket identifying the troubled channel is indicative of a single channel issue or a multiple-channel issue.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein a determination of a multiple-channel issue directs further troubleshooting to a video hub office, and a determination of a single channel issue directs further troubleshooting to a content provider.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the channel of the media broadcast is indicated as being a troubled channel according to a trouble ticket associated with the subscriber.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to locate trouble tickets having issues with the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to:

query a customer support server for at least one additional trouble ticket indicative of issues with at least a subset of the at least one additional channel; and

retrieve the at least one additional trouble ticket from the customer support server.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to assign at least a subset of the located trouble tickets to a technician assigned the trouble ticket associated with the subscriber.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein at least one of the customer support server and the media content processing subsystem are configured to link at least a subset of the located trouble tickets to the trouble ticket associated with the subscriber.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to display a scan of channels available to the subscriber that are shared by the same spectrum block as the troubled channel.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein the media content processing subsystem is further configured to display a scan of channels that are shared by same spectrum block as the troubled channel, regardless of availability of the channels to the subscriber according to the service plan.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving an indication of a troubled channel based on a trouble ticket associated with a subscriber;

scanning, by a diagnostic tool application executed by a media content processing subsystem associated with the subscriber, at least a subset of channels of a media broadcast to create a spectrum block map;

determining a spectrum block of a channel of a media broadcast indicated as being a troubled channel; and

identifying, by the diagnostic tool application according to the spectrum block map, at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block of the troubled channel.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising scanning the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block to determine whether at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block is also a troubled channel.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising scanning adjacent channels to the channels of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block to determine whether the adjacent channels outside of the spectrum block of the troubled channel are also troubled channels.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising determining, based on whether the at least one additional channel is also a troubled channel, whether the trouble ticket indicating the troubled channel is indicative of a single channel issue or a multiple-channel issue.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising locating trouble tickets for issues with the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising assigning the at least one located trouble tickets to a technician assigned the trouble ticket indicating the troubled channel.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a software program, the software program being executable to provide operations comprising:

scanning at least a subset of channels of a media broadcast to create a spectrum block map;

determining a spectrum block of a channel of a media broadcast indicated as being a troubled channel; and

identifying, according to the spectrum block map, at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block of the troubled channel.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 19, further providing operations comprising:

scanning the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block to determine whether at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block is also a troubled channel;

determining, based on the information indicative of whether the at least one additional channel is also a troubled channel, whether a trouble ticket indicating the troubled channel is indicative of a single channel issue or a multiple-channel issue.

21. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 19, further providing operations comprising at least one of:

locating trouble tickets for issues with the at least one additional channel of the media broadcast included in the spectrum block; and

assigning the at least one located trouble tickets to a technician assigned a trouble ticket indicating the troubled channel.