Video system and remote control with touch interface for supplemental content display

• US 9,232,167 B2
• Filed: 08/04/2009
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dish Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Echostar Technologies LLC (Echostar Corporation)
• Inventors: Cooke, Benjamin T., Nguyen, Vincent Dung
• Primary Examiner(s): Lubit, Ryan A
• Application Number:
  US12/535,224
• Publication Number:
  US 20110032191A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,345 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-184, 345173-178, 715/716, 715/719, 715/764, 715/781, 715/810
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42209 for displaying non-command information, e.g. electronic program guide [EPG], e-mail, messages or a second television channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42221 Transmission circuitry, e.g. infrared [IR] or radio frequency [RF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a method of operating a remote control system having a touch interface. The method comprises receiving a user input through the touch interface, generating a control communication corresponding to the user input and transferring the control communication from a communication transceiver to remotely control a display of content on a video display system, receiving into the communication transceiver supplemental content for display on the touch interface, and displaying the supplemental content on the touch interface while the video display system displays the content.

Claims

1. A method of operating a remote control system having a touch interface, the method comprising:

receiving a user input through the touch interface;

generating a control communication corresponding to the user input and transferring the control communication from a communication transceiver to remotely control a display of content on a video display system;

receiving at the touch interface, an additional user input comprising a continuous movement user input;

generating at least one control communication corresponding to the continuous movement user input and transferring the control communication from the communication transceiver to remotely control the display of content on a video display system;

receiving, into the communication transceiver, a plurality of supplemental content objects for display on the touch interface; and

displaying one or more objects of the plurality of supplemental content objects on the touch interface while the video display system displays the content, wherein the continuous user input is received through the touch interface while at least one supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects is displayed on the touch surface, and wherein the at least one supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects displayed on the touch interface changes to at least one other supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects corresponding to a changed position of the continuous movement user input.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving another user input through the touch interface while displaying the at least one other supplemental content object of the touch interface, generating another control communication corresponding to the other user input, and transferring the other control communication from the communication transceiver to further remotely control the display of the content on the video display system.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving another user input through the touch interface while displaying the at least one other supplemental content object of the touch interface, generating another control communication corresponding to the other user input, and transferring the other control communication from the communication transceiver to control generation of peripheral content by a peripheral media system.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch pad.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch screen.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the supplemental content object is unrelated to the content on the video display system.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the supplemental content object includes user-specific viewing history information associated with a particular customer account of a satellite television provider.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the continuous movement user input comprises a dragging motion from a first position to a second position along the touch interface.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the supplemental content object displayed changes to the at least one other supplemental content object corresponding to an internal position along the touch interface between the first position and the second position.

10. A remote control system comprising:

a touch interface configured to receive a first user input, and a second user input comprising a continuous movement user input;

a processing system configured to generate at least one control communication corresponding to each of the user inputs; and

a communication transceiver configured to;

transfer each control communication to remotely control display of an electronic programming guide that has a listing of content available for viewing from multiple channels at different time slots and of particular content on a video display system; and

receive a plurality of supplemental content objects for display on the touch interface;

the touch interface further configured to display at least one supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects while the video display system displays the particular content, wherein the touch interface is configured to receive the continuous user input concomitantly with display of the at least one supplemental content object, and wherein the at least one supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects displayed on the touch interface changes to at least one other supplemental content object of the plurality of supplemental content objects corresponding to a changed position of the continuous movement user input.

11. The remote control system of claim 10 wherein the touch interface is further configured to receive another user input while displaying the at least one other supplemental content object of the touch interface, and wherein the processing system is further configured to generate another control communication corresponding to the other user input, and wherein the communication transceiver is further configured to transfer the other control communication to further remotely control the display of the content on the video display system.

12. The remote control system of claim 10 wherein the touch interface is further configured to receive another user input while displaying the at least one other supplemental content object of the touch interface, and wherein the processing system is further configured to generate another control communication corresponding to the other user input, and wherein the communication transceiver is further configured to transfer the other control communication to control generation of peripheral content by a peripheral media system.

13. The remote control system of claim 10 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch pad.

14. The remote control system of claim 10 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch screen.

15. A video system comprising:

a remote control device configured to receive a first user input and a second user input that comprises a continuous movement user input through a touch interface, process the user input to generate at least one control communication to playback particular content corresponding to each of the user inputs, wirelessly transfer each control communication to remotely control playback of the particular content on a video display system, and display supplemental content objects through the touch interface, wherein the touch interface is configured to receive the continuous movement user input concomitantly with display of at least one supplemental content object, and wherein the at least one supplemental content object displayed on the touch interface changes to at least one other supplemental content object corresponding to a changed position of the continuous movement user input; and

a video control system in communication with the remote control device and configured to wirelessly receive the control communication, receive the particular content from a content delivery system and store the particular content as recorded content, receive a plurality of supplemental content objects for display by the touch interface, control display of the particular content on the video display system based on the control communication, and transfer the supplemental content to the remote control device, wherein the supplemental content objects are obtained separately from the particular content in response to receiving the control communication to playback the recorded content, and is stored on the video control system until the particular content is displayed on the video display system.

16. The video system of claim 15 wherein:

the remote control device interface is further configured to receive another user input through the touch interface while displaying the at least one other supplemental content object on the touch interface, generate another control communication corresponding to the other user input, and transfer the other control communication to control generation of peripheral content by a peripheral media system; and

the video control system is configured to receive information about the peripheral content from another content delivery system, receive the other control communication, and transfer information about the peripheral content and the other control communication to the peripheral media system.

17. The video system of claim 16 wherein the content delivery system comprises a satellite broadcast system and wherein the another content delivery system comprises a terrestrial transmission system.

18. The video system of claim 15 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch pad.

19. The video system of claim 15 wherein the touch interface comprises a touch screen.