Digital data insertion apparatus and methods for use with compressed audio/video data

• US 9,900,633 B2
• Filed: 08/10/2015
• Issued: 02/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nielsen Media Research, Inc. (Nielsen Holdings plc)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Ramaswamy, Arun, Srinivasan, Venugopal
• Primary Examiner(s): Diep, Nhon
• Application Number:
  US14/822,608
• Publication Number:
  US 20150350698A1
• Time in Patent Office: 925 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B63G 8/00 Underwater vessels, e.g. submarines; Equipment specially adapted thereforsubmarine hulls B63B3/13; diving chambers with mechanical link, e.g. cable, to a base B63C11/34; divers' sleds B63C11/46; torpedoes F42B19/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/14 for monitoring programmes
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/28 Arrangements for simultaneous broadcast of plural pieces of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/33 by plural channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/95 characterised by a specific format, e.g. an encoded audio stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/43 for identifying broadcast channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/73 using meta-information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/236 Assembling of a multiplex stream, e.g. transport stream, by combining a video stream with other content or additional data, e.g. inserting a URL [Uniform Resource Locator] into a video stream, multiplexing software data into a video stream; Remultiplexing of multiplex streams; Insertion of stuffing bits into the multiplex stream, e.g. to obtain a constant bit-rate; Assembling of a packetised elementary stream multiplexing of data packets for data networks, e.g. RTP/UDP H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2362 Generation or processing of Service Information [SI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44224 Monitoring of user activity on external systems, e.g. Internet browsing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for inserting data a compressed data bitstream are disclosed. An example method includes inserting audience measurement data in a compressed bitstream by eliminating a first type of data within the compressed data bitstream, packing a second type of data to occupy a location within the compressed data bitstream from which the first type of data is eliminated, and inserting the audience measurement data in a predetermined location within the compressed data bitstream that is expanded as a result of the packing of the second type of data to form a modified compressed data bitstream. The example method also includes generating the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream.

Claims

1. A method of generating ratings information, the method comprising:

inserting audience measurement data in a compressed bitstream by;

eliminating a first type of data within the compressed data bitstream;

packing a second type of data to occupy a location within the compressed data bitstream from which the first type of data is eliminated; and

inserting the audience measurement data in a predetermined location within the compressed data bitstream that is expanded as a result of the packing of the second type of data to form a modified compressed data bitstream; and

generating the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein generating the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream includes:

generating program lineup information based on audience measurement data extracted at a first location;

generating consumption information based on audience measurement data at a second location; and

comparing the program lineup information to the consumption information to generate the ratings information.

3. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the compressed data bitstream includes at least an audio program or a video program.

4. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the first type of data includes a skip byte and the predetermined location is an auxiliary data field.

5. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the second type of data includes compressed audio content or compressed video content.

6. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the compressed data bitstream is AC-3 compliant.

7. A method as defined in claim 6, further including re-computing cyclical redundancy check values for each AC-3 frame of the compressed data bitstream after inserting the audience measurement data in the predetermined location.

8. A system for generating ratings information, the system comprising:

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the memory, the processor to;

insert audience measurement data in a compressed bitstream by;

eliminating a first type of data within the compressed data bitstream;

packing a second type of data to occupy a location within the compressed data bitstream from which the first type of data is eliminated; and

inserting the audience measurement data in a predetermined location within the compressed data bitstream that is expanded as a result of the packing of the second type of data to form a modified compressed data bitstream; and

generate the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream.

9. A system as defined in claim 8, wherein the processor is to generate the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream by:

generating program lineup information based on audience measurement data extracted at a first location;

generating consumption information based on audience measurement data at a second location; and

comparing the program lineup information to the consumption information to generate the ratings information.

10. A system as defined in claim 8, wherein the compressed data bitstream includes at least an audio program or a video program.

11. A system as defined in claim 8, wherein the first type of data includes a skip byte and the predetermined location is an auxiliary data field.

12. A system as defined in claim 8, wherein the second type of data includes compressed audio content or compressed video content.

13. A system as defined in claim 8, wherein the compressed data bitstream is AC-3 compliant.

14. A system as defined in claim 13, wherein the processor is to re-compute cyclical redundancy check values for each AC-3 frame of the compressed data bitstream after inserting the audience measurement data in the predetermined location.

15. A machine readable storage device or storage disk comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a machine to at least:

insert audience measurement data in a compressed bitstream by;

eliminating a first type of data within the compressed data bitstream;

packing a second type of data to occupy a location within the compressed data bitstream from which the first type of data is eliminated; and

inserting the audience measurement data in a predetermined location within the compressed data bitstream that is expanded as a result of the packing of the second type of data to form a modified compressed data bitstream; and

generate the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream.

16. A machine readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to generate the ratings information based on the modified compressed data bitstream by:

generating program lineup information based on audience measurement data extracted at a first location;

generating consumption information based on audience measurement data at a second location; and

comparing the program lineup information to the consumption information to generate the ratings information.

17. A machine readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 15, wherein the compressed data bitstream includes at least an audio program or a video program.

18. A machine readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 15, wherein the first type of data includes a skip byte, the second type of data includes compressed audio content or compressed video content and the predetermined location is an auxiliary data field.

19. A machine readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 15, wherein the compressed data bitstream is AC-3 compliant.

20. A machine readable storage device or storage disk as defined in claim 19, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the machine to re-compute cyclical redundancy check values for each AC-3 frame of the compressed data bitstream after inserting the audience measurement data in the predetermined location.