Event booking mechanism

• US 9,038,118 B2
• Filed: 10/03/2011
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Original Assignee: OpenTV, Inc. (Kudelski SA)
• Inventors: Pierre, Ludovic, Godin, Thierry, Kalluri, Rama, Nguyen, Jino
• Primary Examiner(s): Harold, Jefferey
• Assistant Examiner(s): KARWAN, SIHAR A
• Application Number:
  US13/251,616
• Publication Number:
  US 20120090012A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,324 Days
• Field of Search: 725/131, 725/43
• US Class Current: 725/93
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/24 Monitoring of processes or resources, e.g. monitoring of server load, available bandwidth, upstream requests monitoring of server performance or load G06F11/34; arrangements for observation, testing or troubleshooting for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25808 Management of client data terminal profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/303
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25866 Management of end-user data customer care in data networks H04L41/5077
• 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 21/4431 characterized by the use of Application Program Interface [API] libraries
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8545 for generating interactive applications

Abstract

A mechanism for booking events comprising an event broker, one or more event managers and one or more action handlers. In one embodiment, the event broker is configured to register a plurality of event bookings, each of which identifies an event and a corresponding action. For each event booking, the event broker notifies an event manager which is configured to detect the type of event identified in the event booking. When the event manager detects the identified event, it notifies the event broker. The broker then notifies an action handler which is configured to initiate the type of action identified in the event booking. The action handler then initiates the action. If the event booking is non-recurring and the action is complete, the event booking is unregistered by the event broker.

Claims

1. A system to book events and initiate actions corresponding to said events, said system comprising:

a plurality of resources, wherein each of the plurality of resources is configured to perform one or more actions in the system;

an event broker, comprising at least one hardware processor, configured to register a plurality of event bookings in response to requests from one or more clients executing in the system, wherein each said event booking identifies a corresponding event and a corresponding action;

one or more event managers, wherein each of the one or more event managers is configured to detect one or more particular types of events and to notify said event broker of said detected events; and

one or more action handlers, wherein each of the one or more action handlers is configured to initiate one or more particular types of actions in response to receiving a notification from said event broker of a corresponding event detected by one of said one or more event managers;

wherein said event broker, for each notification of a detected event received from said one or more event managers, is configured to determine whether a resource conflict exists for use of at least one of the plurality of resources between a corresponding action of said detected event and another action currently using the at least one of the plurality of resources, and to notify a corresponding one of said one or more action handlers of said detected event in response to determining a resource conflict does not exist for use of said at least one of the plurality of resources.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said system is implemented as a framework comprising a software layer between an application layer and a driver layer.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the framework is implemented in a receiver for a broadcast system.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein at least a portion of said events are associated with a broadcast signal.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein said event broker, said one or more event managers and said one or more action handlers comprise library extensions accessible by an operating system executing in said receiver.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein said event broker is configured to maintain said event bookings from a plurality of distinct clients.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein said events corresponding to said event bookings comprise a plurality of distinct event types.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein said actions corresponding to said event bookings comprise a plurality of distinct action types.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein each said event booking identifies an event manager configured to detect said corresponding event and an action handler configured to initiate said corresponding action.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein said event broker is configured to resolve a resource conflict by delaying at least one of said actions that conflicts with another one of said actions.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein said event broker is configured to maintain ranks corresponding to said event bookings and, if a plurality of said events have been detected, to initiate said corresponding actions in an order determined by said ranks.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein said event broker is configured to control accesses to said event bookings based on permissions associated with said accesses and said event bookings.

13. The system of claim 1 wherein each of said event bookings has a corresponding expiration time and wherein said event broker is configured to unregister ones of said event bookings which have passed said expiration time.

14. A method comprising:

providing a plurality of resources, wherein each of the plurality of resources is configured to perform one or more actions within a system;

registering, at an event broker comprising at least one hardware processor, a plurality of event bookings in response to requests from one or more clients executing in the system, wherein each said event booking describes a corresponding event and a corresponding action;

providing a plurality of event managers, wherein each of the plurality of event managers is configured to detect one or more particular types of events and to notify said event broker of said detected events;

providing a plurality of action handlers wherein each of the plurality of action handlers is configured to initiate one or more particular types of actions in response to receiving a notification from said event broker of a corresponding event detected by one of the plurality of event managers;

detecting one of said events at an event manager of the plurality of event managers, wherein said event manager corresponds to said detected one of said events;

notifying said event broker of said detected one of said events by said event manager corresponding to said detected one of said events;

determining, at said event broker, in response to the notifying of said detected one of said events, whether a resource conflict exists for use of at least one of the plurality of resources between a corresponding action of said detected one of said events and another action currently using the at least one of the plurality of resources;

notifying, at said event broker, an action handler of the plurality of action handlers of said detected one of said events in response to determining a resource conflict does not exist for use of said at least one of the plurality of resources.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein registering one of said booking events comprises storing information identifying one of said plurality of event managers which is configured to detect said corresponding event.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein registering one of said booking events comprises storing information identifying one of said plurality of action handlers which is configured to initiate said corresponding action.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said action is selected from the group consisting of:

downloading an application;

launching an application;

launching a popup; and

notifying a running application of said one of said events.

18. A device comprising:

a signal receiver configured to receive a broadcast signal;

an event broker mechanism coupled to said signal receiver; and

a storage device coupled to said event broker mechanism and configured to store event bookings;

wherein each of said event bookings identifies a corresponding event and a corresponding action;

wherein said event broker mechanism is configured to operate as an event broker, and wherein said event broker mechanism is configured to execute one or more event managers and one or more action handlers;

wherein each of said one or more event managers is configured to detect one or more particular types of events and to notify said event broker of said detected events;

wherein each of said one or more action handlers is configured to initiate one or more particular types of actions in response to receiving a notification from said event broker of a corresponding event detected by one of said one or more event managers;

wherein said event broker mechanism is configured to register said event bookings;

wherein said event broker mechanism, for each notification of a detected event received from said one or more event managers, is configured to determine whether a resource conflict exists for use of at least one of the plurality of resources between a corresponding action of said detected event and another action currently using the at least one of the plurality of resources, and to notify a corresponding one of said one or more action handlers of said detected event in response to determining a resource conflict does not exist for use of said at least one of the plurality of resources.

19. The device of claim 18 wherein said device comprises an interactive television system receiver coupled to receive said broadcast signal from a broadcast station and configured to provide an output signal to a television.

20. The device of claim 18 wherein said event broker mechanism comprises a processor executing computer software.

21. The device of claim 18 wherein said event broker mechanism comprises application specific circuitry.

22. The device of claim 18 wherein said storage device comprises memory.

23. The device of claim 18 wherein said storage device comprises non-volatile storage.