User interface for entertainment systems

• US 9,497,515 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2012
• Issued: 11/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nuance Communications, Inc. (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Cheong, Yuen-Keen, Hatch, Steven A., Young, Hoi L.
• Primary Examiner(s): FLYNN, RANDY A
• Application Number:
  US13/587,234
• Publication Number:
  US 20140053210A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,552 Days
• Field of Search: 725/37, 725/39, 725/44, 725 47- 49, 725/52, 725/53, 725/59
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42203 sound input device, e.g. microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4828 for searching program descriptors retrieval of video data G06F16/739
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6581 Reference data, e.g. a movie identifier for ordering a movie or a product identifier in a home shopping application

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for providing a search interface for an electronic device including a tuner configured to tune the electronic device to receive scheduled programming content. A search query is received and one or more data sources including information about media content are searched based, at least in part, on the search query. The results of the search are presented on a user interface using a time-based axis and a time-independent axis.

Claims

1. A method of presenting search results on a visual user interface for a digitally-tunable electronic device configured to display scheduled programming content, the method comprising:

receiving a free-form voice input comprising a search query, wherein the free-form voice input is not constrained to a specific voice command recognizable by a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device;

storing for each of a plurality of intended actions, an association between the intended action and one or more terms, each of which comprises at least one word, wherein none of the one or more terms is included as a portion of a specific voice command included in a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device;

determining an intended action to perform based, at least in part, on the free-form voice input, wherein the determined intended action is selected from the group consisting of listening to music content, watching video content, and playing content that is always accessible, wherein determining the intended action comprises selecting the intended action from among the plurality of intended actions by determining that the free-form voice input includes at least one of the one or more terms associated with the intended action;

selecting, based on the determined intended action, a plurality of data sources to search, wherein the selected plurality of data sources to search include at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one bundled service content data source;

searching the selected plurality of data sources based, at least in part, on the search query and the determined intended action;

ordering results of the search based, at least in part, on which of the selected plurality of data sources each result of the results of the search is associated with; and

presenting the ordered results of the search on the user interface, wherein the ordered results of the search combine at least one first result corresponding to scheduled programming content returned from the at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one second result corresponding to bundled service content returned from the at least one bundled service content data source.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one second result includes at least one bundled service result that, when selected, displays multiple results from the corresponding bundled service data source.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source for a web-based service.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a local data source associated with the electronic device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a plurality of data sources connected via a network.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source of on-demand content.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the results of the search comprises presenting an image corresponding to at least one of the results of the search.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with a plurality of instructions that, when executed by at least one computer perform a method of presenting search results on a visual user interface for a digitally-tunable electronic device configured to display scheduled programming content, the method comprising:

receiving a free-form voice input comprising a search query, wherein the free-form voice input is not constrained to a voice command recognizable by a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device;

storing for each of a plurality of intended actions, an association between the intended action and one or more terms, each of which comprises at least one word, wherein none of the one or more terms is included as a portion of a specific voice command included in a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device;

determining an intended action to perform based, at least in part, on the free-form voice input, wherein the determined intended action is selected from the group consisting of listening to music content, watching video content, and playing content that is always accessible, wherein determining the intended action comprises selecting the intended action from among the plurality of intended actions by determining that the free-form voice input includes at least one of the one or more terms associated with the intended action;

selecting, based on the determined intended action, a plurality of data sources to search, wherein the selected plurality of data sources to search include at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one bundled service content data source;

searching the selected plurality of data sources based, at least in part, on the search query and the determined intended action;

ordering results of the search based, at least in part, on which of the selected plurality of data sources each result of the results of the search is associated with; and

presenting the ordered results of the search on the user interface, wherein the ordered results of the search combine at least one first result corresponding to scheduled programming content returned from the at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one second result corresponding to bundled service content returned from the at least one bundled service content data source.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the at least one second result includes at least one bundled service result that, when selected, displays multiple results from the corresponding bundled service data source.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source for a web-based service.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a local data source associated with the electronic device.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a plurality of data sources connected via a network.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source of on-demand content.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein presenting the results of the search comprises presenting an image corresponding to at least one of the results of the search.

15. A digitally-tunable electronic device configured to display scheduled programming content, the electronic device comprising:

at least one storage device configured to store for each of a plurality of intended actions, an association between the intended action and one or more terms, each of which comprises at least one word, wherein none of the one or more terms is included as a portion of a specific voice command included in a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device; and

at least one processor programmed to;

receive a free-form voice input comprising a search query, wherein the free-form voice input is not constrained to a voice command recognizable by a command grammar associated with the digitally-tunable electronic device;

determine an intended action to perform based, at least in part, on the free-form voice input, wherein the determined intended action is selected from the group consisting of listening to music content, watching video content, and playing content that is always accessible, wherein determining the intended action comprises selecting the intended action from among the plurality of intended actions by determining that the free-form voice input includes at least one of the one or more terms associated with the intended action;

select, based on the determined intended action, a plurality of data sources to search, wherein the selected plurality of data sources to search include at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one bundled service content data source;

search the selected plurality of data sources based, at least in part, on the search query and the determined intended action;

order results of the search based, at least in part, on which of the selected plurality of data sources each result of the results of the search is associated with; and

present the ordered results of the search on the user interface, wherein the ordered results of the search combine at least one first result corresponding to scheduled programming content returned from the at least one scheduled programming content data source and at least one second result corresponding to bundled service content returned from the at least one bundled service content data source.

16. The digitally-tunable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the at least one second result includes at least one bundled service result that, when selected, displays multiple results from the corresponding bundled service data source.

17. The digitally-tunable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source for a web-based service.

18. The digitally-tunable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a local data source associated with the electronic device.

19. The digitally-tunable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a plurality of data sources connected via a network.

20. The digitally-tunable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the at least one bundled service data source comprises a data source of on-demand content.