Multimedia control center

• US 20070189737A1
• Filed: 10/11/2005
• Published: 08/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Computer Incorporated (Apple Inc.)
• Inventors: Kerr, Duncan, Chaudhri, Imran, Ording, Bas, King, Nick, Forstall, Scott, Seymour, Eric, van Os, Marcel, Madden, Thomas, Lemay, Stephen, Fabrick, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 7,966,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 386/234
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0227 Cooperation and interconnection of the input arrangement with other functional units of a computer G06F3/023 - G06F3/037 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4112 having fewer capabilities than the client, e.g. thin client having less processing power or no tuning capabilities
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4312 involving specific graphical features, e.g. screen layout, special fonts or colors, blinking icons, highlights or animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4314 for fitting data in a restricted space on the screen, e.g. EPG data in a rectangular grid
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4316 for displaying supplemental content in a region of the screen, e.g. an advertisement in a separate window
• 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 21/47 End-user applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/478 Supplemental services, e.g. displaying phone caller identification, shopping application
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/482 End-user interface for program selection broadcast systems using EPGs H04H60/72
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/163 by receiver means only

Abstract

Techniques and systems for centralized access to multimedia content stored on or available to a computing device are disclosed. The centralized access can be provided by a media control interface that receives user inputs and interacts with media programs resident on the computing device to produce graphical user interfaces that can be presented on a display device.

Claims

1. A main menu associated with a media control center, said main menu comprising:

a plurality of media icons, each media icon representing a different media feature of a multimedia control center, the media icons being arranged along a closed path and at preset icon positions along the closed path, the media icons moving as a group around the closed path between icon positions in accordance with a navigation signal.

2. The main menu as recited in claim 1 wherein the preset icon positions include a primary position and one or more secondary positions and wherein the media icon in the primary position is the media icon that is activated when an activation signal is received.

3. The main menu as recited in claim 2 wherein the main menu further comprises:

a label disposed underneath the media icon when the media icon is positioned at the primary position, the label describing the media feature associated with media icon positioned at the primary position.

4. The main menu as recited in claim 1 wherein the media icon in the primary position is larger than the media icons in the secondary positions, and wherein the media icons in the secondary positions are smaller the further they are away from the primary position.

5. The main menu as recited in claim 1 wherein the sizes of the media icons change as they are moved along the closed path, the media icons becoming larger as they approach the primary position, the media icons becoming smaller as they travel away from the primary position.

6. The main menu as recited in claim 1 wherein the closed path is oval shaped and wherein the preset positions are equally spaced along the oval shaped closed path.

7. A method of operating a main menu of a media control center, said method comprising:

presenting a plurality of media icons on a screen, each media icon representing a different media feature of a multimedia control center;

arranging the media icons along a closed path and at preset icon positions along the closed path; and

moving the media icons as a group around the closed path between icon positions in accordance with a navigation signal.

8. The method as recited in claim 7 further comprising designating one of the preset icon positions as a primary position and adjusting the size of the media icons as they are moved around the closed path, the media icons becoming larger as they approach the primary position, the media icons becoming smaller as they travel away from the primary position.

9. The method as recited in claim 7 further comprising:

determining the media features to be represented in the main menu;

providing media icons associated with the media features designated for presentation; and

adjusting the location of the preset icon positions in accordance with the number of media icons to be presented.

10. The method as recited in claim 7 further comprising:

introducing the media icons one by one onto the screen and directing them to the preset icon positions in accordance with a main menu open signal.

11. The method as recited in claim 10 wherein the media icons are directed along substantially the same lead in path.

12. The method as recited in claim 10 wherein the media icons are directed along different lead in paths, each lead in path ending at one of the preset icon positions.

13. The method as recited in claim 7 further comprising designating one of the preset icon positions as a primary position and presenting a label that identifies the media icon at the primary position.

14. The method as recited in claim 13 further comprising transitioning the main menu to a feature menu in accordance with an activation signal, the step of transitioning including moving the media icon and media label currently in the primary position to the top of the screen while removing the remaining media icons from the screen, and while bringing a list of media items into the screen.

15. A menu associated with a media control center, said menu comprising:

a plurality of media items arranged in a list, at least some of the media items having viewable media content associated therewith;

a movable selector feature capable of traversing through the list of media items so as to highlight one of the media items; and

a view region where viewable media content associated with a highlighted media item is outputted.

16. The menu as recited in claim 15 wherein the viewable media content is skewed in the view region.

17. The menu as recited in claim 15 wherein the viewable media content includes a reflection portion that continuously mirrors the viewable content.

18. The menu as recited in claim 15 wherein the viewable media content is a single image.

19. The menu as recited in claim 15 wherein the viewable media content is a collection of images, and wherein the images are continuously presented one after the other while the media item is highlighted.

20. The menu as recited in claim 15 wherein the viewable media content is video, and wherein the video is continuously presented the media item is highlighted.

21. A method of operating a menu of a media control center, said method comprising:

providing a plurality of media items, each media item having viewable media content associated therewith;

presenting the media items in a list and including a movable selector feature capable of traversing through the list so as to highlight one of the media items; and

when a media item is highlighted, presenting the viewable media content associated with the highlighted media item next to the list of media items.

22. The menu as recited in claim 21 further comprising:

launching a the viewable media content when the highlighted media item is activated.

23. The menu as recited in claim 21 wherein the step of presenting the viewable media content includes,

retrieving the viewable media content;

playing the viewable media content; and

transforming individual segments of the viewable media content as the viewable media content is played; and

displaying the transformed viewable media content.

24. The menu as recited in claim 23 wherein the step of transforming the viewable media content includes one or more of the following:

resizing the viewable media content to fit inside a desired area;

reconfiguring the viewable media content into another shape;

or

generating a reflected version of the viewable media content and combining the reflected version with the actual viewable media content.

25. The menu as recited in claim 23 wherein the step of transforming comprises reflecting and skewing the viewable media content.

26. The menu as recited in claim 23 wherein the step of transforming comprises:

receiving an input image of the viewable media content;

varying the darkness of the input image from lighter to darker from the middle to right edge of the input image;

making a copy of the darkened input image;

flipping the copied input image upside down;

cropping the flipped input image;

varying the transparency of the cropped input image from partially transparent to fully transparent from the top edge to bottom edge of the input image;

combining the transparent input image with the darkened input image, the top edge of the transparent image being attached to the bottom edge of the darkened input image; and

skewing the combined input image by lowering the right upper corner of the combined image and raising the right bottom corner of the combined image.

27. A menu method associated with a media control center, said menu comprising:

providing a plurality of images, each image representing a media item;

placing the images in rows, each row including a plurality of side by side images;

providing first, second and third row positions in a viewing area of the display screen, the first row position being located at a first edge of the viewing area, the second row position being located at a second edge of the view area, the third row position being located in the middle of the viewing area;

initially presenting rows of images at the first row position, the second row position, and the third row position, the rows of images moving vertically across a viewing area between the row positions and in and out of the viewing area;

upon receiving a navigation signal,

moving the row of images initially positioned in the first row position out of the viewing area,

moving a new row of images into the viewing area and into the second row position,

moving the remaining rows of presented images over one row position;

initially presenting a slider for highlighting one of the images within one of the row positions, the slider being movably restrained within the row position and capable of moving horizontally across the row and between the side by side images of the row;

upon receiving a second navigation signal,

moving the slider from one image to the other, the highlighted image being the media item that is activated when an activation signal is received.

28. The menu as recited in claim 27 wherein the images are images of movie trailers and wherein the movie trailer images are retrieved from a data store when the menu is opened, the images including links to the video associated with the movie trailer image.

29. The menu as recited in claim 27 further comprising a header that includes a title identifying the image that is currently highlighted by the slider.

30. The menu as recited in claim 27 wherein the slider is configured as a sleeve that includes an upper layer and a lower layer, the upper and lower layers operating as an integral unit that move together when traversing the various images, the upper layer appearing to slide over the top of the image, the lower layer appearing to slide under the bottom of the image and over a background image.

31. The menu as recited in claim 30 wherein the upper layer is a border that surrounds the image, and the lower layer is a sheet, the border and sheet having the same outer dimensions, which are larger than the image such that a gap is formed between the border and the image, the border being opaque and the lower sheet being partially transparent.

32. A menu associated with a media control center, said menu comprising:

a blurred media application window disposed in the background of a viewing area; and

a list of control options disposed in the foreground of the viewing area and over the blurred media application window, at least one of said control options being configured to initiate a transition from the list of control options to the blurred media application window, the transition including fading the list of control options out of the viewing area while focusing the media application window into the foreground of the viewing area.

33. A method of operating a DVD player with a media control center and a remote control with a single menu button, said method comprising:

in response to the menu command from the single menu button of the remote control,

loading a DVD movie, the DVD movie having a DVD menu;

generating a menu that integrates a DVD feature menu of the media control center with a DVD menu, the menu having two states, in a first state the DVD feature menu is presented in the foreground, in a second state, the DVD menu is presented in the foreground, the DVD feature menu having a first control option for playing the DVD movie and a second control option for transitioning from the first to the second state;

while in the first state,

playing the DVD movie when the first control option is selected, or

transitioning to the second state when the second control option is activated;

while in the second state,

playing the movie in accordance with a play signal,

transitioning to the first state in response to a menu command from the single menu button of the remote control;

while the DVD movie is playing,

stopping the movie and marking the location of the stopped movie in response to the menu command from the single menu button of the remote control; and

proceeding back to the menu.

34. The method as recited in claim 33 wherein the method proceeds back to the first state of the menu.

35. The method as recited in claim 33 wherein the method proceeds back to the second state of the menu.

36. The method as recited in claim 33 wherein the step of proceeding back to the menu includes determining the last state of the menu and proceeding back to that state of the menu.

37. The method as recited in claim 33 wherein the marked location of the DVD movie is retained for future use.