Systems and methods for managing available bandwidth in a household

• US 9,800,907 B2
• Filed: 12/01/2015
• Issued: 10/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Rovi Guides, Inc. (Adeia Inc.)
• Inventors: Wallters, Claire M., Palmateer, Lauren
• Primary Examiner(s): Bruckart, Benjamin R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huang, Jen-Shi
• Application Number:
  US14/955,345
• Publication Number:
  US 20170155938A1
• Time in Patent Office: 693 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/0894 Packet rate
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communication real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM] H04L51/04; selective video distribution H04N21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23 Processing of content or additional data; Elementary server operations; Server middleware
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23406 involving management of server-side video buffer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2385 Channel allocation H04N21/266 takes precedence; Bandwidth allocation H04N21/24 takes precedence ; allocation of channels according to the instantaneous demands of the users in time-division multiplex systems H04J3/1682; admission control, resource allocation in open networks H04L12/5692; arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896; negotiating bandwidth in wireless networks H04W28/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/24 Monitoring of processes or resources, e.g. monitoring of server load, available bandwidth, upstream requests monitoring of server performance or load G06F11/34; arrangements for observation, testing or troubleshooting for broadcast or for distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/12
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2402 Monitoring of the downstream path of the transmission network, e.g. bandwidth available traffic monitoring in data switching networks H04L43/00; monitoring data switching networks utilization H04L43/0876
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43 Processing of content or additional data, e.g. demultiplexing additional data from a digital video stream; Elementary client operations, e.g. monitoring of home network or synchronising decoder's clock; Client middleware real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44 Processing of video elementary streams, e.g. splicing a video clip retrieved from local storage with an incoming video stream or rendering scenes according to encoded video stream scene graphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4402 involving reformatting operations of video signals for household redistribution, storage or real-time display details of conversion of video standards at pixel level H04N7/01; video transcoding H04N19/40; adapting incoming signals to the display format of the display terminal G09G5/005; media handling at the source in data packet switching networks H04L65/764
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44209 Monitoring of downstream path of the transmission network originating from a server, e.g. bandwidth variations of a wireless network arrangements for maintenance or administration in data switching networks involving bandwidth and capacity management H04L41/0896
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44227 Monitoring of local network, e.g. connection or bandwidth variations; Detecting new devices in the local network configuring of peripheral devices in general G06F9/4411; monitoring connectivity in data switched networks H04L43/0811
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64 Addressing network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming H04L61/00; support for multicast or broadcast of one-way stream services H04L65/611
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64738 Monitoring network characteristics, e.g. bandwidth, congestion level data switched network analysis H04L41/14; monitoring functioning in data switched networks H04L43/0817; flow control in packet networks H04L47/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/64792 Controlling the complexity of the content stream, e.g. by dropping packets intermediate media network packet handling H04L65/765; proxy provisioning conversion or adaptation for reducing the amount or size of exchanged application data H04L67/5651; negotiation of resources in wireless networks H04W28/16

Abstract

Systems and methods for managing available bandwidth in a household are provided. A request to access a first media asset is received. A determination is made as to whether a bandwidth currently available in the household is sufficient for enabling access to the first media asset. When the bandwidth currently available in the household is insufficient for enabling access to the first media asset, a search is performed for a second media asset currently consuming a portion of the household bandwidth needed for enabling access to the first media asset. A third media asset is identified having a remaining duration that is more than a remaining duration of the second media asset. A message is displayed that indicates the bandwidth currently available in the household is insufficient to access the first media asset and that has an option to access the third media asset instead of the first media asset.

Claims

1. A method for managing available bandwidth in a household, the method comprising:

receiving, from a user device, a request to access a first media asset;

retrieving, from stored metadata associated with the first media asset, a minimum bandwidth value for accessing the first media asset;

comparing the minimum bandwidth value to a household bandwidth value, wherein the household bandwidth value indicates a bandwidth currently available in the household;

storing, in a bandwidth consumption field of a household bandwidth state database, a plurality of bandwidth consumption values, wherein first and second of the plurality of bandwidth consumption values are associated respectively with second and fourth media assets and represent an amount of bandwidth currently being consumed by the second and fourth media assets, respectively;

in response to determining that the minimum bandwidth value is greater than the household bandwidth value, retrieving the first and second bandwidth consumption values stored in the household bandwidth state database;

comparing the retrieved the first and second bandwidth consumption values to the retrieved minimum bandwidth value for accessing the first media asset;

in response to determining that the second bandwidth consumption value exceeds the minimum bandwidth value and that the first bandwidth consumption value does not exceed the minimum bandwidth value, selecting the second media asset associated with the second bandwidth consumption value;

determining a time remaining for completing access to the second media asset;

searching duration values stored in a duration field of a media asset database to identify a third media asset associated with a duration value that is more than the time remaining; and

generating for display on the user device a message that indicates the bandwidth currently available in the household is insufficient to access the first media asset and that has an option to access the third media asset instead of the first media asset.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a user selection of a quality associated with the first media asset; and

processing the stored metadata to identify the minimum bandwidth value that is associated with the selected quality.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the message includes an option to enable shared access to the second media asset.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing an initial value for the household bandwidth value in the household bandwidth state database;

receiving a request to access the second media asset before receiving the request to access the first media asset;

retrieving, from stored metadata associated with the second media asset, a minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset;

storing the minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset in the bandwidth consumption field of the household bandwidth state database associated with the second media asset; and

decrementing the initial value for the household bandwidth value by the minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the bandwidth available in the household is associated with a first network, and wherein the message includes at least one of an option to access the first media asset from a second network and an option to access email.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the time remaining comprises:

retrieving from the household bandwidth state database a current play position of the second media asset; and

computing a difference between a duration of the second media asset and the current play position to determine the time remaining.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the second media asset is provided by an on-demand content source and the third media asset is provided by a broadcast content source.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the message includes an option to terminate access to the second media asset in order to enable access to the first media asset.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the duration value of the third media asset represents how much time remains in the third media asset.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein searching the duration values comprises:

identifying an attribute of the first media asset;

searching attributes stored in an attribute field of the media asset database to identify a list of media assets associated with an attribute corresponding to the identified attribute of the first media asset; and

searching the duration values stored in the media asset database for the list of media assets.

11. A system for managing available bandwidth in a household, the system comprising:

a household network having an available bandwidth;

a user device that includes control circuitry, input interface circuitry, display circuitry, and communications circuitry, wherein the control circuitry transmits data to the household network through the communications circuitry and receives data from the household network through the communications circuitry, and wherein the control circuitry receives input from a user through the input interface circuitry; and

a storage device for storing a household bandwidth state database and a media asset database, wherein the storage device is accessible to the user device, wherein the control circuitry of the user device is configured to;

receive, from the input interface circuitry, a request to access a first media asset;

retrieve, from stored metadata associated with the first media asset, a minimum bandwidth value for accessing the first media asset;

compare the minimum bandwidth value to a household bandwidth value, wherein the household bandwidth value indicates a bandwidth currently available in the household network;

store, in a bandwidth consumption field of the household bandwidth state database, a plurality of bandwidth consumption values, wherein first and second of the plurality of bandwidth consumption values are associated respectively with second and fourth media assets and represent an amount of bandwidth currently being consumed by the second and fourth media assets, respectively;

in response to determining that the minimum bandwidth value is greater than the household bandwidth value, retrieve the first and second bandwidth consumption values stored in the household bandwidth state database;

compare the retrieved the first and second bandwidth consumption values to the retrieved minimum bandwidth value for accessing the first media asset;

in response to determining that the second bandwidth consumption value exceeds the minimum bandwidth value and that the first bandwidth consumption value does not exceed the minimum bandwidth value, select the second media asset associated with the second bandwidth consumption value;

determine a time remaining for completing access to the second media asset;

search duration values stored in a duration field of the media asset database to identify a third media asset associated with a duration value that is more than the time remaining; and

generate for display on the user device through the display circuitry a message that indicates the bandwidth currently available in the household is insufficient to access the first media asset and that has an option to access the third media asset instead of the first media asset.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry of the user device is configured to:

receive a user selection of a quality associated with the first media asset; and

process the stored metadata to identify the minimum bandwidth value that is associated with the selected quality.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the message includes an option to enable shared access to the second media asset.

14. The system of claim 11 further comprising a server configured to:

store an initial value for the household bandwidth value in the household bandwidth state database;

receive a request to access the second media asset before receiving the request to access the first media asset;

retrieve, from stored metadata associated with the second media asset, a minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset;

store the minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset in the bandwidth consumption field of the household bandwidth state database associated with the second media asset; and

decrement the initial value for the household bandwidth value by the minimum bandwidth value for accessing the second media asset.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the bandwidth available in the household is associated with a first network, and wherein the message includes at least one of an option to access the first media asset from a second network and an option to access email.

16. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry of the user device is configured to determine the time remaining by:

retrieving from the household bandwidth state database a current play position of the second media asset; and

computing a difference between a duration of the second media asset and the current play position to determine the time remaining.

17. The system of claim 11, wherein the second media asset is provided by an on-demand content source and the third media asset is provided by a broadcast content source.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein the message includes an option to terminate access to the second media asset in order to enable access to the first media asset.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein the duration value of the third media asset represents how much time remains in the third media asset.

20. The system of claim 11, wherein the control circuitry of the user device is configured to search the duration values by:

identifying an attribute of the first media asset;

searching attributes stored in an attribute field of the media asset database to identify a list of media assets associated with an attribute corresponding to the identified attribute of the first media asset; and

searching the duration values stored in the media asset database for the list of media assets.