Media transfer protocol

• US 20060174021A1
• Filed: 12/30/2005
• Published: 08/03/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sonic IP Incorporated (Endeavor Group Holdings Inc.)
• Original Assignee: DIVX Incorporated (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Fudge, Brian, Fry, Kevin, Osborne, Roland, Srinivasan, Mayur, Robinson, Aaron, van Zoest, Alexander
• Granted Patent: US 7,664,872 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/230
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/65 Network streaming protocols, e.g. real-time transport protocol [RTP] or real-time control protocol [RTCP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/14 Multichannel or multilink protocols
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

A computer device selected as a media server is connected to a consumer electronic (CE) device over multiple media transfer channels. The multiple media transfer channels together with an improved media transfer protocol allow for efficient, real-time transfer of different types of digital media, in various combinations, for playing on the CE device. Each type of media is transferred over its own dedicated channel according to its individual data rate. The improved media transfer protocol allows the data to be transmitted in either an asynchronous mode or a synchronous stream or timestamp mode depending on whether synchronization is desired. A dedicated control channel allows for the transfer of control information from the CE device to the media server as well as for resynchronizing media position of the server upon a change in play mode of the corresponding media.

Claims

1. A server coupled to a client over a plurality of media transfer channels and transferring different types of media data over the plurality of media transfer channels, the server comprising:

a media server module identifying a first type of media data for transmitting over a first of the plurality of media transfer channels and a second type of media data for transmitting over a second of the plurality of media transfer channels;

a network transport module creating a first media transfer packet including the first type of media data and first timing information and a second media transfer packet including the second type of media data and second timing information, the first and second timing information for controlling rendering of the first and second types of media data by the client, the network transport module transmitting the first media transfer packet via the first of the plurality of media transfer channels data according to a first data rate and the second media transfer packet via the second of the plurality of media transfer channels according to a second data rate.

2. The server of claim 1, wherein the media server module receives control information from the client over a control channel, processes the control information and identifies particular media in response, and the network transport module transmits the particular media over at least one of the plurality of media transfer channels.

3. The server of claim 1, wherein the first of the plurality of media transfer channels is a video channel, and the first type of media data is video data.

4. The server of claim 3, wherein the video data is for a user interface video prompting user interactions with the client.

5. The server of claim 3, wherein the first timing information indicates that the first type of media data is streaming data for rendering immediately by the client asynchronously from the second type of media data.

6. The server of claim 3, wherein the first timing information indicates that the first type of media data is synchronous stream data for rendering by the client according to an indicated timestamp, the first timing information further including a duration value, wherein rending of the second type of media data is paused responsive to a determination that a media timer exceeds a last received timestamp plus its associated duration value.

7. The server of claim 3, wherein the second of the plurality of media transfer channels is an audio channel, and the second type of media data is audio data.

8. The server of claim 7, wherein the second timing information indicates that the second type of media data is asynchronous stream data for rendering immediately by the client asynchronously from the first type of media data.

9. The server of claim 7, wherein the second timing information indicates that the second type of media data is synchronous stream data for rendering by the client according to an indicated timestamp, the first timing information further including a duration value, wherein rending of the first type of media data is paused responsive to a determination that a media timer exceeds a last received timestamp plus its associated duration value.

10. The server of claim 3, wherein the second of the plurality of media transfer channels is an overlay channel, the second type of media data is overlay data, and the second timing information indicates that the second type of media data is asynchronous streaming data for rendering immediately by the client asynchronously from the first type of media data.

11. The server of claim 3, wherein the second of the plurality of media transfer channels is an overlay channel, the second type of media data is subtitle data, and the second timing information indicates that the second type of media data is synchronous timestamped data for rendering by the client synchronously with the first type of media data according to an indicated timestamp.

12. The server of claim 1, wherein the media server module identifies a third type of media data for transmitting over a third of the plurality of media transfer channels and the network transport module creates a third media transfer packet including the third type of media data and third timing information, the third timing information for controlling rendering of the third type of media data by the client, the network transport module transmitting the third media transfer packet via the third of the plurality of media transfer channels according to a third rate.

13. The server of claim 12, wherein the first, second, and third of the plurality of media transfer channels are respectively video, audio, and overlay channels, and the first, second, and third types of media data are respectively video, audio, and overlay data.

14. The server of claim 13, wherein the first and second timing information indicates that the video and audio data are synchronous streaming data for rendering by the client according to an indicated timestamp, the first and second timing information further including first and second duration values, wherein rending of the video or audio data is paused responsive to a determination that a media timer exceeds a last received timestamp for the corresponding media plus its associated duration value, and the third timing information indicates that the overlay data is synchronous timestamped data for rendering by the client synchronously with the video and audio data according to an indicated timestamp.

15. The server of claim 13, wherein the first, second, and third timing information indicates that the first, second, and third media data are asynchronous streaming data for rendering immediately by the client asynchronously from other types of media data.

16. The server of claim 1, wherein the first of the plurality of media transfer channels is an audio channel, the first type of media data is audio data, the second of the plurality of media transfer channels is an overlay channel, and the second type of media data is overlay data.

17. The server of claim 16, wherein the first and second timing information indicate that the first and second types of media data are asynchronous streaming data for rendering immediately by the client asynchronously from each other.

18. A server coupled to a client over a plurality of media transfer channels and transferring different types of media data over the plurality of media transfer channels, the server comprising:

a data store storing a plurality of media files;

a media server module coupled to the data store, the media server module identifying and retrieving a particular media file from the data store;

a demultiplexer module coupled to the media server module, the demultiplexer module parsing the particular media file and separating a plurality of different types of media data included in the media file; and

a network transport module transmitting each separated type of media data over a separate one of the plurality of media transfer channels.

19. The server of claim 18, wherein the media server module receives a change in play mode over a control channel, processes the change in play mode, and transmits a resynchronization packet for resynchronizing a media position of the server.

20. The server of claim 18, wherein the media file is a movie file, and the demultiplexer module separates video and audio data included in the movie file.

21. The server of claim 20, wherein the network transport module transmits the video data over a dedicated video channel, and the audio data over a dedicated audio channel.

22. The server of claim 21, wherein the network transport module creates a video transfer packet including the separated video data and video timing information, and an audio transfer packet including the separated audio data and audio timing information, the video and audio timing information for controlling rendering of the separated video and audio data by the client.

23. The server of claim 22, wherein the video and audio timing information indicates that the separated video and audio data is synchronous stream data for rendering by the client according to an indicated timestamp, the video and audio timing information each further including a duration value, wherein rending of the video or audio data is paused responsive to a determination that a media timer exceeds a last received timestamp for the corresponding media plus its associated duration value.

24. The server of claim 23, wherein the demultiplexer module separates subtitle data included in the movie file.

25. The server of claim 24, wherein the network transport module transmits the subtitle data over a dedicated subtitle channel.

26. The server of claim 25, wherein the video transfer packet includes the separate subtitle data and subtitle timing information, the subtitle timing information for controlling rendering of the subtitle data by the client, the subtitle timing information for indicating that the subtitle data is synchronous timestamped data for rendering by the client synchronously with the video and audio data according to an indicated timestamp.

27. A server coupled to a client over a plurality of media transfer channels and transferring different types of media data over the plurality of media transfer channels, the server comprising:

a data store storing a plurality of media files;

a media server module coupled to the data store, the media server module receiving a request to playback a particular media file, the media server module identifying the particular media file as a file having a file type unsupported by the server;

a network transport module receiving from the client a particular range of data included in the particular media file, creating a media transfer packet including the requested range of data, and transmitting the media transfer packet over one of the plurality of media transfer channels, the one of the plurality of media transfer channels being dedicated for transmitting media files having unsupported file types.

28. The server of claim 27, wherein the plurality of media transfer channels further include dedicated video, audio, and overlay channels, wherein the network transport module blocks usage of the video, audio, and overlay channels during the transfer of the particular media file.