Video jukebox service

• US 20010003188A1
• Filed: 12/19/2000
• Published: 06/07/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/1994
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PDACO LIMITED
• Original Assignee: Elonex IP Holdings Limited
• Inventors: Kikinis, Dan
• Granted Patent: US 6,490,725 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4004 Coupling between buses
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/00 Routing or path finding of packets in data switching networks routing or path finding in wireless networks H04W40/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/42 Centralised routing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/612 for unicast
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/21 Server components or server architectures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23 Processing of content or additional data; Elementary server operations; Server middleware
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17336 Handling of requests in head-ends

Abstract

A video jukebox service has a world-wide array of file servers interconnected by data links and having video input apparatus. Each file server has a plurality of connected clients. Video clippings input at the video input apparatus are shared with the other file servers and stored in a database at each file server. Clients are notified of availability of video clippings, and clippings are downloaded to client stations on demand. In a preferred embodiment, the file server network is a toriodal arrangement, and client communication nodes equal in number to the number of file servers are interconnected in a toroidal fashion as well. Individual client stations are connected to individual ones of the client communication nodes, with the overall network in the form of nested toroids.

Claims

1. A video jukebox, comprising:

a plurality of computerized file server stations interconnected in a network by first data links, with individual ones of the file server stations also connected to a video input apparatus; and

a plurality of client stations connected by second data links to individual ones of the file server stations;

wherein each file server station with a video input apparatus accepts video clippings from the video input apparatus, stores the clippings in a database, and shares the video clippings with other file servers in the network over the first data links, and wherein each file server notifies connected clients of new video clippings available, and downloads video clippings to clients on demand.

2. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

, further comprising an accounting subsystem for tracking client accesses to available video clippings and accumulating transactional information and client charges.

3. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

wherein the second data links are analog telephone modem links.

4. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

wherein the second data links connecting clients to servers are Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) data links.

5. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

wherein some of the second data links are analog telephone modem links and others are Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) links.

6. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

wherein the first data links are Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) links.

7. The video jukebox system of

claim 1

wherein the first data links are microwave links.

8. A video jukebox system as in

claim 1

wherein individual file servers are located in or near population centers in a global network.

9. A video jukebox system as in

claim 1

wherein each file server is coupled to a client communication node, each client communication node is in turn connected to a plurality of individual client stations, and the client nodes are interconnected in a client node network by third data links.

10. A video jukebox system as in

claim 9

wherein each file server station is connected to four other file server stations and each client communication node is connected to four other client communication nodes, the client communication node network and the file server network forming thereby a nested tori network.

11. A video jukebox as in

claim 10

wherein each communication node comprises microprocessor-based data routing circuitry connected to the data links terminating at the node.

13. The method of

claim 11

further comprising a step of accumulating information on client accesses and providing accounting for individual clients, the accounting including billing for use.

14. The method of

claim 11

wherein the first data links are Integrated Services Digital Networks (ISDN) links.

15. The method of

claim 11

wherein the first and the second data links are Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) links.

16. The method of

claim 11

wherein some links are Integrated Services Digital Network links, and others are analog telephone modem links.

17. The method of

claim 1

wherein massively parallel communication is provided by interconnecting the file servers in a first toroidal array, interconnecting a plurality of client communication nodes equal in number to the number of file servers in a second toriodal array, connecting clients to the client communication nodes, and interconnecting each file server with a corresponding communication node, such that exactly one file server is connected to each communication node.

12. A method for providing video clippings to clients, comprising steps of:

(a) monitoring traditional sources for suitable video clippings of interest to clients;

(b) providing selected video clippings to one of a plurality of file servers interconnected in a network by first data links;

(c) sharing the video clippings between file servers by transferring the clippings over the first data links, the clippings being stored in a database at each file server to which they are transferred;

(d) notifying clients connected by second data links to individual file servers of available video clippings; and

(e) downloading selected video clippings to individual connected clients on demand.