Personal video recorder systems and methods

• US 8,893,194 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2010
• Issued: 11/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: United Video Properties Incorporated (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Baumgartner, Joseph P., Carpenter, Kenneth F. Jr., Ellis, Michael D., Gaydou, Danny R.
• Primary Examiner(s): SHANG, ANNAN Q
• Application Number:
  US12/818,863
• Publication Number:
  US 20100310227A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,614 Days
• Field of Search: 725 74- 85, 725/100, 725131-134, 725139-142, 725151-153, 386/200, 709217-232
• US Class Current: 725/80
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4135 external recorder interface circuits between an apparatus for recording television signals and a television receiver H04N5/775
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4147 PVR [Personal Video Recorder] H04N5/76 takes precedence ; arrangements for broadcast with accumulation-type receivers H04H20/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/431 Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4334 Recording operations recording of a television signal H04N5/76; arrangements for recording or accumulating broadcast information or broadcast-related information H04H60/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43622 Interfacing an external recording device
• 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 21/443 OS processes, e.g. booting an STB, implementing a Java virtual machine in an STB or power management in an STB
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47214 for content reservation or setting reminders; for requesting event notification, e.g. of sport results or stock market stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services over packet-switching network H04L12/1859; notification of incoming messages in packet switching networks H04L51/224
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4821 using a grid, e.g. sorted out by channel and broadcast time
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 Television signal recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/775 between a recording apparatus and a television receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/782 on tape

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed for providing an interactive television system for recording television programming. The interactive television system may include components for providing personal video recorder (PVR) functionality, such as an interactive television program guide (IPG), PVR extensions, PVR application programming interfaces (APIs), a PVR device, any suitable hardware or software, or a combination thereof. These components may be implemented in, for example, an arrangement having an integrated PVR-compliant device with a PVR device, or in an arrangement having a PVR-compliant device (e.g., a set-top box) coupled to PVR equipment (e.g., a remote PVR server or a PVR sidecar) with a PVR device. The PVR-compliant device may include software and hardware configured to implement the IPG. The PVR APIs may be a library of intelligent vendor-specific and vendor-independent APIs able to determine the type of PVR device being used. The PVR extensions and PVR APIs may be configured to provide a seamless integration of functionality associated with the PVR-compliant device and the PVR device. A full port of the IPG may be implemented in both the PVR-compliant device and the PVR device.

Claims

1. A method for operating a personal video recorder compliant device, the method comprising:

detecting, using a processor, a coupling of a personal video recorder device to the personal video recorder compliant device;

determining, using the processor, a type of the personal video recorder device being used from a plurality of compatible types of personal video recorder devices based on information received from the personal video recorder device; and

selecting, using the processor, a communication method for communicating with the personal video recorder device, from a plurality of available communication methods, based on the determined type of the personal video recorder device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the determining the type of personal video recorder device being used compromises using a handshake protocol to request and receive the information from the personal video recorder device.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the determining the type of personal video recorder device being used compromises using application programming interfaces to interpret in the information received from the personal video recorder device.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the application programming interfaces include routines.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the type of personal video recorder device comprises at least one of a model and a manufacturer of the personal video recorder device.

6. A non-transitory machine readable medium for a personal video recorder compliant device, the non-transitory machine readable medium having machine program logic recorded thereon for:

detecting, using a processor, a coupling of a personal video recorder device to the personal video recorder compliant device;

determining, using the processor, a type of the personal video recorder device being used from a plurality of compatible types of personal video recorder devices based on information received from the personal video recorder device; and

selecting, using the processor, a communication method for communicating with the personal video recorder device, from a plurality of available communication methods, based on the determined type of the personal video recorder device.

7. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6 wherein the type of personal video recorder device comprises at least one of a model and a manufacturer of the personal video recorder device.

8. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6 wherein the determining the type of personal video recorder device being used compromises using application programming interfaces to interpret in the information received from the personal video recorder device.

9. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 8 wherein the application programming interfaces include routines.

10. A personal video recorder compliant device, comprising:

a processor configured to;

detect a coupling of a personal video recorder device to the personal video recorder compliant device;

determine a type of the personal video recorder device being used from a plurality of compatible types of personal video recorder devices based on information received from the personal video recorder device; and

select a communication method for communicating with the personal video recorder device, from a plurality of available communication methods, based on the determined type of the personal video recorder device.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the type of personal video recorder device comprises at least one of a model and a manufacturer of the personal video recorder device.

12. The system of claim 10 wherein determining the type of personal video recorder device being used compromises using application programming interfaces to interpret the information received from the personal video recorder device.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the application programming interfaces include routines.