Parental control for CATV converters

• US 4,718,107 A
• Filed: 02/14/1986
• Issued: 01/05/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Television Analog Compression Corporation
• Original Assignee: RCA Corporation
• Inventors: Hayes, John J.
• Primary Examiner(s): NG, JIN FAY
• Application Number:
  US06/829,242
• Time in Patent Office: 690 Days
• Field of Search: 455/4, 455/131, 455/1, 455/26.1, 455/181, 455/186, 455/151, 380/20, 358/86, 358/349
• US Class Current: 725/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/2221 being a cable television head-end CATV in broadcast systems H04H20/78
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/441 Acquiring end-user identification , e.g. using personal code sent by the remote control or by inserting a card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4542 Blocking scenes or portions of the received content, e.g. censoring scenes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/45457 applied to a time segment
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4753 for user identification, e.g. by entering a PIN or password cryptographic authentication protocols H04L9/32; networks authentication protocols H04L63/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4755 for defining user preferences, e.g. favourite actors or genre retrieval personalisation and generation of user profiles for the retrieval of video data G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306
• 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 21/6543 for forcing some client operations, e.g. recording remote booting in general G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/162 Authorising the user terminal, e.g. by paying; Registering the use of a subscription channel, e.g. billing

Abstract

A controller in a CATV converter provides three operating modes comprising: (1) a family viewing mode in which conversion of selected channels is blocked; (2) an enter access code mode for selecting the channels to be blocked from family viewing; and (3) a parental control mode in which all channels may be viewed. The family viewing mode is enabled by turn-on of the converter or by commands by the user or the CATV system operator. The enter access code mode is initiated by a user command. The parental control mode is enabled by user entry of a valid access code or when a new access code is created while in the enter access code mode.

Claims

1. An addressable CATV converter having a parental control system in which selected authorized channels may be locked out for normal viewing comprising:

a tuner, video and audio signal processing circuits, and a modulator, said tuner being connectable to a CATV cable feed for receiving RF input signals and converting selected RF input signals to IF signals, said video and audio signal processing circuits being connected to said tuner for processing video and audio signals contained in said IF signals, and said modulator being connected to said video and audio signal processing circuits for modulating said video and audio signals at a predetermined radio frequency to be supplied to a television receiver;

code demodulator means connectable to said CATV cable feed for receiving and demodulating coded address and command signals;

keyboard input means for permitting a user to input power on and off commands, a mode command, an access code, and a desired viewing channel number; and

three state controller means connected to receive as inputs said coded address and command signals from said code demodulator means and user inputs from said keyboard input means and connected to provide control outputs to said tuner and said video and audio processing circuits, said three state controller means including memory means for storing a user entered access code and a list of user designated blocked channels, said three state controller means having a family viewing mode in which authorized channels which have not been locked out may be viewed, an enter access code mode, and a parental control mode in which all authorized channels may be viewed, said three state controller means being in the family viewing mode when said converter is turned off and then on, or a mode command is entered from said keyboard input means while said three state controller means is in either the enter access code mode or the parental control mode, or a clear parental control command is received by said three state controller means from said code demodulator means, said three state controller means being responsive to said clear parental control command to clear said user entered access code and delete said list of user designated blocked channels in said memory means, said three state controller means being in the enter access code mode when a mode command is entered from said keyboard input means while said three state controller means is in the family viewing mode, and said three state controller means being in said parental control mode when a correct access code or a new access code is created while said three state controller means is in the enter access code mode.

2. An addressable CATV converter as recited in claim 1 wherein said three state controller includes counting means initialized when said three state controller switches to the enter access code mode for counting access codes entered by a user and, if a predetermined number of incorrect access codes are entered, preventing the user from entering further access codes for a predetermined period of time.

3. An addressable CATV converter as recited in claim 2 wherein said three state controller further comprises timing means initialized with said counting means for resetting said counting means after a predetermined period of time.

4. A three state controller for an addressable CATV converter for controlling the channels which may be viewed by a subscriber identified by an address assigned to the converter, said three state controller being responsive to addressed commands from a CATV system to which it is connected and to user inputs for generating control signals for the converter, said three state controller means including memory means for storing a user entered access code and a list of user designated blocked channels, said three state controller having a family viewing mode in which authorized channels which have not been locked out may be viewed, an enter access code mode, and a parental control mode in which all authorized channels may be viewed, said three state controller being in the family viewing mode when said converter is turned off and then on, or a user input mode command is received while in either the enter access code mode or the parental control mode or a clear parental control command is received from the CATV system, said three state controller means being responsive to said clear parental control command for clearing said user entered access code and deleting said list of user designated blocked channels in said memory means, said three state controller being in the enter access code mode when a user input mode command is received while in the family viewing mode, and said three state controller being in the parental control mode when either a correct access code or a new code is created while in the enter access code mode.

5. A three state controller for an addressable CATV converter as recited in claim 4 further comprising counting means which is initialized when said three state controller switches to the enter access code mode for counting the number of access codes entered by a user and, if a predetermined number of incorrect access codes are entered, then preventing the user from entering further access codes for a predetermined period of time.

6. A three state controller for an addressable CATV converter as recited in claim 5 further comprising timing means initialized with said counter means for resetting said counter means after a predetermined period of time.

7. A method of controlling access to viewing of selected channels supplied by a CATV system to a subscriber'"'"'s converter comprising the steps of:

building a table of channels which are locked out for normal viewing;

providing a store for an access code;

setting the converter in a family viewing mode when the converter is turned off and then on, said family viewing mode permitting viewing all authorized channels which have not been locked out as indicated by said table;

setting said converter to an enter access code mode in response to a user input mode command while said converter is in the family viewing mode;

setting said converter to a parental control mode in response to a user input of the correct access code contained in said store or, in the event that no access code is contained in said store, in response to a user entering a new access code in said store;

resetting said converter to the family viewing mode in response to a user input mode command while said converter is in either the enter access code mode or the parental control mode; and

resetting said converter to the family viewing mode in response to a clear parental control command received from said CATV system.

8. A method of controlling access to viewing of selected channels supplied by a CATV system to a subscriber'"'"'s converter comprising the steps of:

building a table of channels which are locked out for normal viewing;

providing a store for an access code;

setting the converter in a family viewing mode when the converter is turned off and then on, said family viewing mode permitting viewing all authorized channels which have not been locked out as indicated by said table;

setting said converter to an enter access code mode in response to a user input mode command while said converter is in the family viewing mode;

setting said converter to a parental control mode in response to a user input of the correct access code contained in said store or, in the event that no access code is contained in said store, in response to a user cnetering a new access code in said store;

timing the user input of one or more access codes when the converter is set to the enter access code mode;

counting the number of incorrect access codes entered by the user when the converter is set to the enter access code mode; and

preventing the user from entering an access code is a predetermined number of incorrect access codes have been entered within said predetermined time period.

9. The method recited in claim 8 further comprising the step of resetting the converter to the family viewing mode when the user is prevented from entering an access code.