Systems and methods for widget rendering and sharing on a personal electronic device

• US 9,344,522 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2013
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BBY Solutions Incorporated (Best Buy Co., Inc.)
• Original Assignee: BBY Solutions Incorporated (Best Buy Co., Inc.)
• Inventors: Maxwell, Duane Stewart, Huang, Andrew Shane, Steele, Kenneth Earl, Tomlin, Stephen L., Adler, Steven Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Osman, Ramy M
• Application Number:
  US13/944,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20140082506A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2370/027 Arrangements and methods specific for the display of internet documents
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2380/16 Digital picture frames
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/10 Multimedia information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00973 from a remote device, e.g. receiving via the internet instructions input to a computer terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8153 comprising still images, e.g. texture, background image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8166 involving executable data, e.g. software arrangements for executing specific programs G06F9/44; broadcasting computer programmes in broadcast systems H04H20/91; involving the movement of software or configuration parameters H04L67/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0039 Connection via a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0086 Image transceiver H04N2201/0093 and H04N2201/0094 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0087 Image storage device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0089 : Image display device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 : Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

Systems and methods for providing, sharing, storing and playing widgets and associated media content on a personal audiovisual device, such as a digital photo frame, are described. In one implementation, widgets may be selected by a user for rendering based on capabilities of a user'"'"'s device, with the widgets then provided to the device for playback. Digital content such as audio files, images, and/or video may be rendered in conjunction with playback of the widget. Widgets may be shared between users so as to facilitate sharing of media content.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a processor;

an output system; and

a memory coupled to the processor, the memory providing electronic program code that is executable by the processor, the electronic program code configured to provide output from the electronic device via the output system, by performing operations that;

download a plurality of content items from a network content service, the content items designated for presentation by a user-interactive software application, and the content items being loaded into volatile memory of the electronic device for the presentation by the user-interactive software application;

download a content sequence for an ordered display of the plurality of content items in the user-interactive software application, the content sequence provided by the network content service, wherein the content sequence is customized to a profile for the electronic device maintained by the network content service, the profile being identified at the network content service with use of a device identifier communicated from the electronic device to the network content service; and

execute the user-interactive software application to output the content items from the user-interactive software application via the output system, wherein the content items that are output from the user-interactive software application are output according to the content sequence, wherein the output of the content items from the user-interactive software application is automatically changed according to a schedule specified by the content sequence.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the user-interactive software application includes a widget that is adapted for execution on the electronic device, wherein the operations further include operations that render the widget and the output of the content items to provide visual output from the electronic device via the output system.

3. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the user-interactive software application is further adapted for execution on the electronic device without permanent storage to a storage memory of the electronic device, the user-interactive software application being downloaded from a remote service for execution on the electronic device.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the content items are provided from a grouping of respective software applications in a channel, the channel provided from a plurality of available channels defined by the network content service, wherein the channel specifies the output of the content items according to the content sequence based at least in part on execution of the respective software applications defined in the channel.

5. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the content sequence is provided by sequential transitions among the respective software applications defined in the channel, wherein the content items provided from the respective software applications and a sequential order of the content sequence are customizable by a user at a remote service.

6. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the output system includes a speaker and a display screen, and wherein the content items include one or more of:

games, photos, video content, or audio content.

7. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising:

a wireless network interface;

wherein the wireless network interface is configured for communications with a wireless network, wherein the operations that download the plurality of content items from the network content service download the content items using the communications with the wireless network.

8. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is:

a television, television plug-in module, a set-top box, a game console, a smartphone, a personal digital assistant, a media player, a photo frame, or a portable computing device.

9. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium, including instructions that, when executed by hardware of an electronic device, configure the electronic device to perform operations that:

obtain a plurality of content items from a network content service, the plurality of content items being temporarily cached for output on the electronic device by an instance of a user-interactive application executing on the hardware of the electronic device;

obtain a content sequence from the network content service for an ordered display of the plurality of content items, the content sequence specified by the network content service, wherein the content sequence is defined within a profile for the electronic device maintained by the network content service, the profile being associated by a device identifier communicated from the electronic device to the network content service; and

generate output on the electronic device from the user-interactive application, wherein the plurality of content items are output from the user-interactive application according to a schedule defined by the content sequence.

10. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the user-interactive application provides a widget that is adapted for execution on the electronic device without permanent storage to a storage memory of the electronic device, wherein the instructions further configure the electronic device to perform operations that render the widget and audiovisual content from the plurality of content items to generate audiovisual output from the electronic device.

11. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9, the instructions further configuring the electronic device to perform operations that:

obtain a channel definition for a particular channel from the network content service, the particular channel provided from a plurality of available channels defined by the network content service, wherein the particular channel is configured to output the plurality of content items in the content sequence based at least in part on execution of respective software applications of a plurality of software applications defined in the channel definition.

12. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 11, wherein the content sequence is provided by output from the respective software applications in the particular channel, wherein the content sequence provided in respective channels of the plurality of available channels and the execution of the respective software applications are customizable by a user at a remote service.

13. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9, the instructions further configuring the electronic device to perform operations that:

download the plurality of content items and download the content sequence from the network content service using a wireless network interface, wherein the wireless network interface is configured for communications with a wireless network, wherein the operations that obtain the plurality of content items and obtain the content sequence from the network content service download the plurality of content items and download the content sequence via the wireless network.

14. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9, the instructions further configuring the electronic device to perform operations that:

generate the output on the electronic device from the user-interactive application by rendering audiovisual content of the plurality of content items on a display screen of the electronic device; and

generate output on the electronic device for a control interface to modify the schedule defined by the content sequence by rendering a graphical user interface for control on the display screen of the electronic device.

15. The machine-readable storage medium of claim 9, the instructions further configuring the electronic device to perform operations that:

download, from a remote server, the user-interactive application, wherein the user-interactive application provides display content of the plurality of content items for output in a graphical user interface rendered by the electronic device;

configure the user-interactive application to reference the plurality of content items;

define an ordered sequence of a plurality of displayable applications in response to instructions received via the graphical user interface, the ordered sequence of the displayable applications providing a channel output via the graphical user interface, the user-interactive application being included within the ordered sequence of the displayable applications, wherein the ordered sequence of the displayable applications is defined at the remote server; and

executing the displayable applications to generate output of the ordered sequence of displayable applications, wherein a display interface of the electronic device provides a rendering of the plurality of content items upon execution of the user-interactive application.

16. A method, comprising operations performed with use of a processor and memory of an electronic device, the operations including:

requesting, from a remote content service, a plurality of content items for audiovisual output by a user-interactive software application that is configured for execution on the electronic device, the plurality of content items being cached in a volatile random access memory (RAM) of the electronic device for output on the electronic device by the user-interactive software application;

processing a content sequence for an ordered display of the plurality of content items in the user-interactive software application, the content sequence provided by the remote content service, wherein the content sequence is defined by a profile for the electronic device maintained by the remote content service, the profile being associated by a device identifier communicated from the electronic device to the remote content service; and

outputting the plurality of content items from the user-interactive software application, wherein the plurality of content items are controlled from the user-interactive software application and are output according to the content sequence.

17. The method of claim 16, the operations further including:

executing the user-interactive software application, the user-interactive software application in the form of a user interface widget that is adapted for execution on the electronic device without permanent storage to a storage memory of the electronic device; and

rendering the user interface widget and the plurality of content items from the user interface widget to provide the audiovisual output from the electronic device;

wherein the user interface widget is provided at least in part from a firmware package distributed with the electronic device.

18. The method of claim 16, the operations further including:

requesting and processing a channel definition stored at the remote content service for an ordered display of the plurality of content items, the channel definition provided for a channel from a plurality of channels defined by the remote content service, wherein the channel is configured to output the plurality of content items in the content sequence based at least in part from execution of respective software applications of a plurality of software applications defined in the channel.

19. The method of claim 18, the operations further including:

defining the content sequence and a priority of execution for programs in the plurality of software applications, the content sequence and the priority of execution defined in response to instructions received via a user interface of the electronic device.

20. The method of claim 18, the operations further including:

executing the plurality of software applications in the respective channels, the plurality of software applications including the user-interactive software application, wherein content provided in the respective channels and ordering of the content provided in the respective channels is customizable by a user at the remote content service.

21. The method of claim 16, the operations further including:

downloading the plurality of content items and the content sequence using a wireless network interface of the electronic device, wherein the wireless network interface is configured for communications with a wireless network, wherein the operations that request the plurality of content items for the user-interactive software application also download content via the wireless network.