Systems and methods for transferring content between user equipment and a wireless communications device

• US 9,201,627 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2010
• Issued: 12/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Tam, Terry, So, Jerry, Wong, Dick
• Primary Examiner(s): Chokshi, Pinkal R
• Application Number:
  US12/652,572
• Publication Number:
  US 20110163939A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,156 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1454 involving copying of the display data of a local workstation or window to a remote workstation or window so that an actual copy of the data is displayed simultaneously on two or more displays, e.g. teledisplay
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41407 embedded in a portable device, e.g. video client on a mobile phone, PDA, laptop constructional details of equipment or arrangements specially adapted for portable computer application G06F1/1626; arrangements specially adapted for mobile receivers in broadcast systems H04H20/57
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42221 Transmission circuitry, e.g. infrared [IR] or radio frequency [RF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64707 for transferring content from a first network to a second network, e.g. between IP and wireless

Abstract

A wireless communications device provides users with opportunities to access interactive media guidance or other applications and to control user equipment and interactive media guidance applications. In an exemplary embodiment, if the wireless communications device goes outside of a predetermined range from the user equipment, content that was playing on user equipment may automatically be streamed to the wireless communications device.

Claims

1. A method for automatically transferring media content, the method comprising:

determining, at a wireless communications device, that the wireless communications device is within range of a short-range link formed between the wireless communications device and user equipment;

based on the determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link, refraining from displaying content on the wireless communications device, wherein the content is displayed on the user equipment;

determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link;

based on determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link, automatically receiving, at the wireless communications device, a content stream comprising the content that was displayed on the user equipment when the wireless communications device was within the range of the short-range link, wherein the content stream is received from the user equipment;

and

generating for display the content of the content stream on the wireless communications device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link comprises determining if the short-range link between the user equipment and the wireless communications device is broken.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

re-establishing the short-range link between the wireless communications device and the user equipment in response to determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining if the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link comprises using GPS to determine the location of the wireless communications device.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the content stream comprising the content from the user equipment comprises receiving the content stream over a long-range link that has a range exceeding the short-range link.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the short-range link is at least one of an infrared or Bluetooth link, and wherein automatically receiving, at the wireless communications device, the content stream further comprises receiving the content stream over a Wi-Fi link formed between the user equipment and the wireless communications device.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, at the wireless communications device, that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link; and

based on the determining that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link, terminating the receiving of the content stream at the wireless communications device from the user equipment device, wherein the content that was displayed on the wireless communications device when the wireless communications device was outside of the range of the short-range link is caused to be displayed on the user equipment.

5. A system for automatically transferring media content, system comprising:

a wireless communications device;

wherein the wireless communications device is configured to;

determine, at the wireless communications device, that the wireless communications device is within the range of a short-range link formed between the wireless communications device and user equipment;

based on the determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link, refrain from displaying content on the wireless communications device, wherein the content is displayed on the user equipment;

determine that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link;

based on determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link, automatically receive, at the wireless communications device, a content stream comprising the content that was displayed on the user equipment when the wireless communications device was within the range of the short-range link, wherein the content stream is received from the user equipment;

and

generate for display the content of the content stream on the wireless communications device.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link comprises determining if the short-range link between the user equipment and the wireless communications device is broken.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the wireless communications device is further configured to:

re-establish the short-range connection link between the wireless communications device and the user equipment in response to determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein determining if the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link comprises using GPS to determine the location of the wireless communications device.

14. The system of claim 5, wherein the wireless communications device is further configured to receive the content stream comprising the content from the user equipment via a long-range link that has a range exceeding the short-range link.

17. The system of claim 5 wherein the short-range link is at least one of an infrared or Bluetooth link, and wherein the wireless communications device is further configured, when automatically receiving, at the wireless communications device, the content stream, to receive the content stream over a Wi-Fi link formed between the user equipment and the wireless communications device.

20. The system of claim 5, wherein the wireless communications device is further configured to:

determine, at the wireless communications device, that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link; and

based on the determining that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link, terminate the receiving of the content stream at the wireless communications device from the user equipment device, wherein the content that was displayed on the wireless communications device when the wireless communications device was outside of the range of the short-range link is caused to be displayed on the user equipment.

9. A non-transitory computer readable media comprising machine readable instructions for:

determining, at a wireless communications device that the wireless communications device is within range of a short-range link formed between the wireless communications device and user equipment;

based on the determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link, refraining from displaying content on the wireless communications device, wherein the content is displayed on the user equipment;

determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link;

based on determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link, automatically receiving, at the wireless communications device, a content stream comprising the content that was displayed on the user equipment when the wireless communications device was within the range of the short-range link, wherein the content stream is received from the user equipment;

and

generating for display the content of the content stream on the wireless communications device.

10. The computer readable media of claim 9, wherein determining if the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link further comprises machine readable instructions for determining if the short-range link between the user equipment and the wireless communications device is broken.

11. The computer readable media of claim 10, wherein the machine-readable instructions further comprise machine readable instructions for:

re-establishing the short-range link between the wireless communications device and the user equipment in response to determining that the wireless communications device is within the range of the short-range link.

12. The computer readable media of claim 9, wherein determining that the wireless communications device has moved outside of the range of the short-range link further comprises machine readable instructions for using GPS to determine the location of the wireless communications device.

15. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 9, wherein receiving the content stream comprising the content from the user equipment further comprises machine readable instructions for receiving the content stream over a long-range link that has a range exceeding the short-range link.

18. The computer readable media of claim 9 wherein the short-range link is at least one of an infrared or Bluetooth link, and wherein the instructions for automatically receiving, at the wireless communications device, the content stream further comprise instructions for receiving the content stream over a Wi-Fi link formed between the user equipment and the wireless communications device.

21. The non-transitory computer readable media of claim 9, further comprising machine readable instructions for:

determining, at the wireless communications device, that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link; and

based on the determining that the wireless communications device has moved back from being outside of the range of the short-range link into the range of the short-range link, terminating the receiving of the content stream at the wireless communications device from the user equipment device, wherein the content that was displayed on the wireless communications device when the wireless communications device was outside of the range of the short-range link is caused to be displayed on the user equipment.