Personal video recorder systems and methods

• US 9,491,500 B2
• Filed: 10/28/2014
• Issued: 11/08/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: UV Corporation (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Baumgartner, Joseph P., Carpenter, Kenneth F. Jr., Ellis, Michael D., Gaydou, Danny R. II
• Primary Examiner(s): SHANG, ANNAN Q
• Application Number:
  US14/526,084
• Publication Number:
  US 20150201231A1
• Time in Patent Office: 742 Days
• Field of Search: 725 74- 85, 725/100, 725131-134, 725139-142, 725151-153, 386/200, 709217-232
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 control circuitry, one or more communication channels between a personal video recorder device and the personal video recorder compliant device;

sending, using the control circuitry, a device type identification query to the personal video recorder device;

in response to the sending the device type identification query, using the control circuitry, receiving a device type identification data packet from the personal video recorder device;

inputting, using the control circuitry, the received device type identification data packet into a first database stored in memory listing types of personal video recorder devices corresponding to device type identification data packets to determine a type of the personal video recorder device being used that corresponds to the received device type identification data packet; and

inputting, using the control circuitry, the type of the personal video recorder device into a second database stored in memory listing types of communication protocols corresponding to types of personal video recorder devices to select a type of a communication protocol that corresponds to the personal video recorder device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein a handshake technique is used for sending the device type identification query, and for receiving the device type identification data packet.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein to determine the type of the personal video recorder device being used further comprises using application programming interfaces to interpret the received device type identification data packet.

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

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the type of the 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 having instructions recorded thereon comprising:

an instruction for detecting, using control circuitry, one or more communication channels between a personal video recorder device and the personal video recorder compliant device;

an instruction for sending, using the control circuitry, a device type identification query to the personal video recorder device;

an instruction for receiving, using the control circuitry, a device type identification data packet from the personal video recorder device in response to the sending the device type identification query;

an instruction for inputting, using the control circuitry, the received device type identification data packet into a first database stored in memory listing types of personal video recorder devices corresponding to device type identification data packets to determine a type of the personal video recorder device being used that corresponds to the received device type identification data packet; and

an instruction for inputting, using the control circuitry, the type of the personal video recorder device into a second database stored in memory listing types of communication protocols corresponding to types of personal video recorder devices to select a type of a communication protocol that corresponds to the personal video recorder device.

7. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 6 wherein the type of the 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 to determine the type of the personal video recorder device being used further comprises using application programming interfaces to interpret the received device type identification data packet.

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 first database stored in memory listing types of personal video recorder devices corresponding to device type identification data packets;

a second database stored in memory listing types of communication protocols corresponding to types of personal video recorder devices; and

control circuitry configured to;

detect one or more communication channels between a personal video recorder device and the personal video recorder compliant device;

send a device type identification query to the personal video recorder device;

in response to the sending the device type identification query, receive a device type identification data packet from the personal video recorder device;

input the received device type identification data packet into the first database to determine a type of the personal video recorder device being used that corresponds to the received device type identification data packet; and

input the type of the personal video recorder device into the second database to select a type of a communication protocol that corresponds to the personal video recorder device.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the type of the 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 to determine the type of the personal video recorder device being used further comprises using application programming interfaces to interpret the received device type identification data packet.

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